GBC Workers Take On 'Arrogant' Chairman

The aggrieved staff of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation has redirected part of their anger at the Board Chairman, Prof Stephen Adei, for apparently siding with the Director General of the Corporation, Eva Lokko, against what they see as the interest of the Corporation.

They have accused the Director-General of “criminally” over-deducting and under-deducting employees' tax obligation to the IRS. They have also hit out against attempts to invest the staff car loan fund in the purchase of Treasury Bills. They further accuse the Chairman of misrepresenting the actual balance of the said fund.

A statement issued in Accra on Monday by a group calling itself Concerned Workers of GBC, warned the Board Chairman to sit up or sink with the embattled Director General. The workers disclose that when they earlier insisted on Eva Lokko to leave, Prof Adei arrogantly remarked: “You want Eva out, but if she is out and the position is advertised, do you think any of you here is qualified to hold the position?”

Even the qualified” Eva Lokko has been directed by the board to take up tuition on Management. Already, the Board Director and the Director General have both faced some public contempt for using last Saturday's Big Breakfast Show to hit back at a panelist who had criticized them on a previous Saturday. On Saturday, panelist Niyi Alabi criticized the station for forcing the hostess to read out the unsigned statement, which said Ato Conduah “attacked” the station because he has outstanding issues with GIMPA, where Prof Adei serves as Director General.

The Board's decision to retain the Director-General is seen as bizarre. By recommending for Eva Lokko to go on management training course, the Board impliedly admitted the lady's incompetence and unreadiness for the job. Investigations revealed that despite her apparent incapacity the Government is quite uneasy about removing her in an election year. The fear, however, is that the decision to postpone taking a decisive action might backfire, especially when the lady appears to have lost moral authority over her workforce.

Prof Adei is also seen as not helping. He recently embarrassed the Corporation at a function in his reckless attempt to embarrass a GBC reporter who had appeared late at function he attended.

Prof Adei publicly told the audience to give a sarcastic clap for the young female reporter for being late. Perhaps, unknown to him, the reporter was late because there was no vehicle available to carry her to cover the function.