The Togolese capital, Lome, will host a meeting of ECOWAS Council of Minister on Sunday 21 October 2001, to draw plans on how to move the business of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development forward, following the controversy over the leadership and the legal wrangling that followed it.
There were reports that confidence in the institution is dipping following what appear to be fears that international financial institutions may be wary of putting money in a fund that is prone to political manipulation.
The paper’s intelligence picked up intriguing hints of a plot to reverse the status quo following the enforcement of the recent Abuja court ruling reinforced by a ruling by Togo’s High Court, which effect the return of the ‘withdrawn’ President, Dr. George Sipa Adja Yankey.
This development occurred within days after the controversial Lansana Kouyate of the ECOWAS Secretariat had told the world during a snap visit to Accra that, the Council of Ministers was disregarding the Abuja court verdict since the body had immunity.
It was also gathered that lawyers for Dr. Yankey had invoked the Vienna Convention which allows members to sue and be sued, thereby nullifying the argument.
Already, a Burkinabe Managing Director of one of the subsidiaries of the EBID, Mr. Drabo, the highest-ranking officer after Dr. Yankey, has started drawing a budget for the running of the Fund and assumed the position even before the Council meeting scheduled for the Sunday 21 October 2001.
References to Dr. Yankey’s name have all but been obliterated in the memos that are being produced at the Secretariat in complete disregard of the law and taking advantage of the absence of Dr. Yankey, currently before an Accra High court on the Quality Grain trails.
According to executives spoken to, more than 95 percent of the 120 international work forces in Lome are strongly favouring Dr. Yankey with his “bitterest” foes being Ghanaians, including Mr. Manieson, one of the two others who were interviewed and examined for the position of EBID presidency but lost out of George.
The other was Mrs. Clarke Kwesie former Member of Parliament (MP) for Ablekuma South. “Ghana is hurting the Fund by its attitude. It’s not good at all”, complained one female staffer.
