Gross Maladministration @ EDIF!

Part 1 of many

…As Prof. Dodoo hijacks the Administration of the Fund.

By Innocent Samuel Appiah

HARDCORE INVESTIGATIONS undertaken by this reporter have exposed that an unofficial executive committee, made up of Prof. Francis Dodoo, Juliana Asante, Ernest A. Minta and Cynthia Pamela Addo now seem to be running the day-to-day activities of the Export Development and Investment Fund (EDIF).

But in an attempt to outsmart this reporter in his investigations on some alleged financial malfeasance and impropriety at EDIF, Prof. Dodoo is at it again to play tricks on the Ghanaian public after allegedly creating problems at the Ghana Olympics Committee, leading to its suspension from the International Olympic Committee for about a year.

The secret move by Prof. Dodoo and his cohorts to throw dust into the eyes of the right thinking Ghanaians has backfired and thus paved the way for the paper to unravel more damning things.

Investigations disclosed that there is a serious move by Prof. Dodoo to get the Director of Legal and Administration, Cynthia Pamela Addo, appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at the EDIF Secretariat. However, it has been discovered that Ms. Addo has some ‘cobwebs in her wardrobe,’ which the Board Chairman is trying to shield.

Ms. Addo was directed by the EDIF Board to act on May 30, 2011 as the CEO following the interdiction of the then acting CEO and two other top officials of the Secretariat.

The interdiction of the three on June 23 by the acting Chairman, Prof. Dodoo who also sits on the Population Council, came barely three weeks after directing them to proceed on an immediate leave, when one of them was already enjoying his leave. A memorandum requesting them to proceed on leave was put on the Secretariat’s notice board and after the Board was advised about that wrong move, the memorandum was removed from there.

The interdicted officials are acting Chief Executive Officer, Adjabeng Antwi-Adjei; Kobina Ohemeng Ntiamoah, Director of Audit and Atta Quansah, Director of Finance.

When this reporter attempted speaking to the EDIF Secretariat on a range of issues he was investigating, he was told that the Minister for Trade and Industry, Hannah Tetteh had asked the Board and staff of EDIF not to grant the media any audience on the interdiction and other related issues. However, after going to the Secretariat eight times in a bid to get to know the truth about what was happening at EDIF, this reporter was told to bring a questionnaire to the Board so as to respond to the issues appropriately, which he did last Thursday.

Shockingly, a day after giving the questionnaire to the Board, Prof. Dodoo, together with Ms Addo and another Board Member, Juliana Asante, on the blind side of the other Board Members and the Minister who they claimed had directed that nobody should speak to the media about the issue, had selected some media houses to the Ghana International Press Centre to respond to the questionnaire that was originated by this reporter.

Meanwhile, the paper has learnt that after close of work on Wednesday, October 12, the Board Chairman was at the Secretariat to hold a crisis meeting with the acting CEO on the investigations, and on Thursday, a Board member (name withheld for now) called a media personality to see how best the story could be killed. Even though the EDIF Act, Act 582 of 2000 states categorically that the appointment of the CEO is the prerogative of the President with the advice of the Board given in consultation with the Public Services Commissions, Ms. Addo’s appointment in that ‘acting’ capacity was on the blind side of the President. Investigations showed that even though the interdicted Director of Audit once raised some issues on procurement against Ms Addo, Prof. Dodoo is rather lobbying for her to get the nod as the head of EDIF.

“No procurement issues have ever been raised against Ms Addo. The Director of Operations has been queried on procurement issues and the Board is yet to discuss his responses.” This was the answer given by Prof. Dodoo when this reporter sought to find out whether some procurement issues have been raised against Ms. Addo and if yes, what her responses were.

But our hunt reveals that indeed, procurement issues were raised against Ms. Addo concerning the alleged furnishing of her residence with funds from the Secretariat during the period when EDIF’s new offices at the third floor of the Ghana Olympic Committee building at Ridge with office furniture from Kingdom Books Limited.

Upon assumption of office as the acting CEO on May 30, 2011, Ms. Addo is reported to have brought in some improvements at the Secretariat. Notable among them are Free Friday Wear, which hitherto was paid for by the staff; EDIF Hour where the workers are given the opportunity to interact with one another, Free Lunch, Free Dispensers for Beverage.

Information however gathered from the Secretariat indicates that the Directors used to be given tea items but Ms. Addo recommended that it should be stopped. In this sense, the paper wants to find out why now reintroducing these things? As the Director of Legal and Administration, was Ms. Addo not aware of the need for them? Is she doing this as a nine-day wonder to enable her get the nod and then later scrap them? Nevertheless, the issue of free lunch will soon generate a serious problem because there is nowhere in the public sector of Ghana including the Castle that free lunch is provided. More so, the money being used for the lunch is from the welfare budget of the EDIF Secretariat meant for loans, hospital bills, among others. In any case, the welfare budget was not approved for free lunch. The global budget that was prepared and approved and for which reason the then acting CEO was sent home is what Ms. Addo is using for the free lunch, and yet she is still at work without anybody asking her to proceed on leave. In addition, Tasty Treats Foods (Restaurant) that she contracted to provide the lunch did not go through tender. Information indicated that just a day after she was directed to act as the CEO, Ms. Addo attempted printing complimentary cards for that position but she was asked by the Minister, Hannah Tetteh that she could not carry herself as the acting CEO, since she could only be appointed by the President. She was also reported to have requested for allowance for acting, but was turned down. Checks also revealed that Prof. Dodoo, who is a nephew of former President John Agyekum Kufuor, allegedly used the former President’s name to victimize certain people during the NPP regime and he is at it again because he is a Presidential Advisor and an alleged confidant of the President who throws himself about because of his relationship with the President. The letter interdicting the three Officers and signed by Prof. Dodoo was to investigate whether any fraud or misappropriation of public fund had occurred and to determine the complicity of the officers (if any) in such fraud or misappropriation of public funds. Information showed that three independent consultants were contracted to conduct independent assessment on the Mango Project for 2011 and to establish whether some fraud or misappropriation had been committed. The paper can strongly say that the Consultants, after their investigations, did not recommend further investigation, but according to Prof. Dodoo, the Auditor General has appointed auditors who are about to commence investigation into the activities of EDIF. If auditors are yet to commence an investigation on the Mango Project, what then was the use for engaging the Consultants who are said to have taken GHc51, 434.00 for the job? This can be described as seriously causing financial loss to the state. Meanwhile, the contract did not go through tender. However, Prof. Dodoo asserted that the Public Procurement Authority granted them the permission to procure by the single source method. EDIF was established in October, 2000 to provide financial resources at concessionary rates mainly for the development and promotion of the export trade of Ghana. Things had been smooth sailing until Prof. Dodoo, who is also the Chairman of the Statistical Board, was appointed in March this year as the acting Chairman. He is reported to have come to the Board with some agenda to victimize certain personalities at the Secretariat who had worked very hard to bring EDIF to its present state and replace them with his own people.