NPP makes new appointments

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Parent Category: Our Country

Category: Politics

Created on Tuesday, 19 August 2014 00:00

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NPP makes new appointments

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has made new appointments at its Communications Directorate.

In a statement signed by the party’s General Secretary, Mr Kwabena Agyei Agyepong, on Friday, it stated: “In line with the re-organisation of the Communications Directorate of the party, further appointments and directives will be communicated in due course.”

The new appointments are: for the Northern Sector, Mr Abudu Abdul Ganiyu and Ahmed Karim; for the middle belt, Nana Yaw Osei and Jennifer Amoako; for the Western sector, Micheal Ampong, while Mike Ocquaye, Kofi Boateng, Pius Hadzide and Seibik Bugri will represent the Eastern sector.

Meanwhile, the acting Director of Communications of the party, Mr Perry Okudzeto, has been asked to proceed on a two-year leave.

The two-year leave takes effect from today, August 18, 2014.

In a letter signed and issued by Mr Agyapong to Mr Okudzeto last week, it read: “You have accumulated leave for 4 years but we are able to grant you two years leave and this translates into 40 working days.”

It directed Mr Okudzeto to prepare his handover notes and submit them to the acting Director of Finance and Administration by the close of August 15, 2014.

The letter, released to Mr Okudzeto last week Wednesday, was copied to the national chairman and the acting director of finance and administration of the party.

Perry Okudzeto responds

Reacting to the directive on Joy FM, an Accra-based private radio station, Mr Okudzeto said he was stunned by the letter and the actions of the party’s general secretary.

“The last time I heard proceed on leave was in the days of the National Democratic Congress,” he said.

According to him, he was summoned to the party’s headquarters on Wednesday afternoon for a meeting attended by the NPP’s national chairman, general secretary and the acting director of finance.

He stated that at the meeting he was asked how long he had worked with the party and whether he had ever gone on an annual leave.

He said the executive members at the meeting also told him that in his absence, they would appoint a substantive communications director together with other deputies for the Communication Department.

“I was told that the new leadership of the party was trying to professionalise the party and, therefore, people with accumulated leave had to proceed on leave.

“I was stunned because we work for a political party as an organisation; we work on voluntary basis and we do not enjoy leave, pension, remuneration and other benefits,” he said.

According to him, never before in his political career had he heard of any NPP party officer being asked to go on leave.

“I was appointed as a professional.”

“I was appointed as a professional because I have the background in communication to handle the communication machinery of the party,” he said, adding that “I will go on leave since I have been asked to do so.”

Freddy Blay reacts

Reacting to the letter, the first Vice Chairman of the party, Mr Freddy Blay, expressed shock at the unilateral decision taken by the party’s general secretary, saying: “A letter of such nature has reached the media when I, as first Vice Chairman, have not got a copy.”

“The action of Kwabena Agyapong is a surprise to the Steering Committee of the NPP who are yet to receive copies of the letter,” he said.

Mr Blay said the Communication Department of the party did not belong to the general secretary alone.

“The general secretary has treated the committee with absolute contempt and is behaving like the party belongs to him,” Mr Blay stated.

“The committee should have been informed about such an important party decision,” he said.

18 August 2014

By Nana Konadu Agyeman

Source: Daily Graphic/Ghana