Ansa-Asare Case: Dismissed Over Gabby's exam results

Accra, Sept. 20, GNA - Mr Chris Ackummey, a former assistant lecturer at the Ghana School of Law (GSL), on Tuesday said the kind of tyranny that was perpetuated by Mr Kwaku Ansa-Asare, Director of the GSL, was rare.

He said although his appointment at the GSL had been terminated under questionable circumstances, his main concern was the prevention of such tyranny from ever occurring anywhere again.


Mr Ackummey, who appeared before the five-member committee investigating allegations of corruption and abuse of office against Mr Ansa-Asare, said he was given his letter of dismissal by the then Registrar of the School, Mr Okyere, who handed him the letter which had the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) address.


He said when he opened the envelope he rather found that it was his dismissal letter. He added that the Registrar told him that after he had refused to write the letter as directed by Mr Ansa-Asare, he himself wrote the letter and asked him (the Registrar) to sign it.


Mr Ackummey said when he later enquired from the Director why he was dismissed, the Director accused him of leaking tax information to the IRS, but he denied this.


He said his dismissal letter rather stated that the School no longer needed part-time lecturers but that could not be true since he knew of one lecturer, who was at present at the GSL on part-time basis.


The former lecturer said he rather believed that he was dismissed over a case concerning examination results that had to do with Mr Gabby Otchere-Darko, Managing Editor of the Statesman.

He said he began to have this notion upon reading the Monday, September 19 2005 edition of the Daily Guide in which Mr Otchere-Darko said the Director promised to discipline any lecturer, who had a hand in his failing the Taxation Law and Family Law examination papers.


The former lecturer said he believed this was so because he assisted Justice Margaret Insaidoo, who was then the Taxation Law Lecturer, to set the examination questions and to collate the marks to ensure accurate tabulation and avoid cheating.


Mr Ackummey said he believed that was the reason for the dismissal of Justice Margaret Insaidoo, a former Taxation Law Lecturer, who he assisted when he was a lecturer at the GSL


Mr John Yaw Opoku, a former Deputy Registrar of the GSL, had told the Committee during an earlier sitting that Mr Otchere-Darko, who was to repeat an academic year at the School after he had failed in Taxation Law and Family Law, was made to pass through the influence of Mr Ansa-Asare.


This allegation provoked a reaction from Mr Otchere-Darko through the media.


Mr Asuamah Odoom, Chief Accountant of the GSL, told the Committee that he carried two fertilizer bags of broken floor tiles to his hometown at Breman Asikuman in the Central Region on the permission of the Director and Registrar.

He said the members of staff were told by the Director to take any quantity of broken floor tiles, furniture and old carpet removed from the offices.


Mr Odoom said the water closets were sold between 15,000 and 20,000 cedis to the Chief Accountant, Registrar, the Secretary of the Director and others he could not recall.


Mr Maxwel Opoku Agyeman, a lecturer at the GSL, had earlier accused Mr Odoom in a petition to the Committee that he used floor tiles that belonged to the School to furnish his house in his hometown. The Committee would appear in court on Wednesday September 21 following a suit filed by Mr Ansa-Asare.


The Committee is expected to continue sitting on Thursday September 22.