Tension Brews At Non-Formal Education Division

…As Angry Staff Chases Executive Director Over Welfare Cash Chop-Chop & Victimization

A simmering tension is brewing at the Non-Formal Education Division (NFED), currently known as Complementary Education Agency (CEA), as the workers are on the heels of their executive director over the whereabouts of some GH₵10,000 welfare cash he took in 2020, purposely to grease the palms of some officers at the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC).

The angry workers, through the leadership of their welfare association, in a letter, dated, July 19, 2022, said that the money, as well as some other GH₵ 15,000, was handed to their boss, Mr. Francis Asumadu, to facilitate the migration of staff, something, which, in itself, has become the subject of controversy, leading to an investigation.

According to them, Mr. Asumadu impressed upon the Welfare Association to use the money “to motivate some officials of the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission in order to facilitate the migration onto the Civil Service Structure.”

But the embattled CEA boss, who has allegations of sexual harassment, victimization and extortion against him in a petition currently lying on the desk of the Education Minister, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, after receiving the money, did not present the money to the Salaries Commission staff.

The peeved workers, who are at their wits’ end, said Mr. Asumadu seemingly did not refund the money to the welfare association.

They said that, various attempts to get him to refund the money have also yielded no result three years on.

This, coupled with other matters, is forcing the angry staff of the Complementary Education Agency, planning to organize a press conference on Monday May 22, ostensibly to protest against the continued stay in office by Mr. Asumadu.

A caution letter, issued in July 2022, titled “Request For Refund Of Welfare Fund,” said, even though the chairman called Mr. Asumadu to express his disappointment about the non-payment of the money, his promise to do the needful the following day did not materialize.

A two-week ultimatum contained in the letter was also blatantly ignored by the embattled CEA director.

It said, “By a copy of this letter, you are to refund the said money which is Ten Thousand Ghana Cedis (GH₵10, 000, 00) to the Association within two weeks of receipt of this letter. We are putting the account of the Association together and we need to account for that money.”

The workers recalled that before releasing the second tranche, the national chairman of the association, Edward Ocloo, stressed to Mr. Asumadu their inability to release the money, using the lack of value for money argument.

The request for the money, per this paper’s understanding, coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, and so Mr. Ocloo drew the attention of the executive director to the inconveniences as a result of the disease and his inability to travel with him.

It noted, “On the 13th of November, 2019, you had meeting with the National Executives demanding the second installment. But the chairman told you the executives are unable to release the second installment because we were not having value for money and you took offence.

The workers further said, “Again, on the 11th of May, 2020 when COVID-19 was on ascendency, you invited the chairman and demanded the remaining GH₵10, 000.00.”

They pointed out that, “Knowing what he was planning to do with the money he suggested that the secretary goes with him in place of him, the chairman, to do the presentation at the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission since he resides in Accra.

“Interestingly, after handing the money to the secretary and subsequently presenting it to Mr. Asumadu, he failed to fulfill his part of the bargain. The executives obliged and gave the money to the secretary as you suggested, they stated, adding “Instead of going with the secretary, you took the money from the secretary with the excuse of being busy with office work and postponed the presentation of the money to the following day.”

According to the workers, “His promise to pay the money even without the secretary was never fulfilled, neither was the money refunded back to the Association. All efforts to get the CEA boss to refund the money have fallen on deaf ears.”

They told their director, “The chairman called you and registered his displeasure but you promised him that it was going to be done the following day.

“That following day never came. Since then, the chairman has been requesting for the refund of the money but you paid deaf ears to the appeal,” the workers stated.

More to Come

Source: Anchorghana.com