Public workers question GACL MD’s dismissal

Officials of the Public Sector Workers Union (PSWU) of the Ghana Trades Union Congress (TUC) have raised questions about the dubious dismissal of the Managing Director of Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL) by its board.

At a meeting with journalists in Accra yesterday, members of the PSWU, led by Richard Ampaabeng, its Deputy General Secretary, called on Government to give reasons for the dismissal of Mrs Doreen Owusu Fianko.

“We are shocked by the announcement of her dismissal. In fact, we cannot tell if it is linked to any non-performance on her part or her refusal to sign an addendum which the GACL board was reported to have made to a rent agreement with Aviance,” the dumbfounded officials remarked.

The situation, it indicated, could be linked to the renewal of a $1 million seven-year ground rent which Aviance Ghana paid to GACL in 2007. Aviance has been taking care of cargo handling operations at the Kotoka International Airport.

The rent agreement, which will expire next year (2014), was supposed to be re-negotiated by a task force set up by GACL and headed by E.T.K. Addo, Western Regional Minister.

But before the committee could come out with its report, the board of GACL supposedly reached another agreement with Aviance Ghana reviewing the rent downwards.

Information available to this paper indicates that the task force was able to review the rent upwards to $1.4 million per annum but the GACL hastily settled for $850,000 to be paid by Aviance over the next seven years.

With $550,000 thus cut off, Ghana stands to lose about $3.85 million over the seven-year rent period.

“Now that we understand what has caused Mrs Owusu Fianko’s mischievous dismissal, we think she did the right thing hence our support and respect for her,” Mr Ampaabeng disclosed.

He said Mrs Owusu Fianko was able to install seven boarding gates at the Kotoka International Airport bringing the number to nine.

The air traffic has been upped from 9 to 42 since she took over as MD. Mrs Owusu Fianko has been directed by the George Kuntu-Blankson-led board to hand over to her deputy by Friday.