GIMPA chairman appears in court

Mr Edward Heneku Boohene, Chairman of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) Governing Council, on Wednesday told a Fast Track High Court in Accra that he was not asked by anybody to tender in any documents to the court.

He said he was subpoenaed to appear in court to give evidence in the ongoing suit against Dr. Stephen Adei, Rector of the Institution, but he was not asked to bring along any specific documents.

Mr Boohene who said these during cross-examination by Mr. Anthony Amo Yaw, Counsel for Mr Egbert Faibille, Managing Editor of the Ghanaian Observer Newspaper, assured the court that he would bring all required documents at the next sitting of the court.

Mr Faibille the plaintiff filed a suit at the High Court in his capacity as a citizen of Ghana against three defendants; Dr Stephen Adei, Rector of GIMPA, as the first defendant, the GIMPA Governing Council as the second defendant and the GIMPA Institution as the third defendant.

Among the relief sought by the plaintiff included an order by the court to restrain Dr Adei from holding himself as a professor and Rector of GIMPA, that the Governing Council of GIMPA should advertise the vacant position in the media and a suitable replacement found.

Other relief sought was that damages should be awarded against the first defendant for deceiving the entire GIMPA institution Governing Council and for the fraud that he had perpetuated on the people of Ghana.

Mr. Francis Kofi Ocran, Executive Chairman of the State Enterprises Commission and a member of GIMPA Governing Council, during cross-examination by Mr. Daniel Amartefio, Lead Counsel for Dr Adei told the court that by GIMPA's own convention nobody could use any foreign title unless it was verified by its Academic Board.

He said when it became clear to the Governing Council that there was a problem with Dr Adei's professorship title they asked him to stop using it.

When asked by Mr. Amartefio whether some members of the Council with professorship titles were required to go through the same process, he said it was the right of the appointing authority to put whoever they want there because most of them were not members of staff.