Kumasi Metro PRO Under Fire Over GHC12,500 Media 'SOLI'

Public Relations Officer for the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly Mr. Godwin Okuma Nyame, has come under tough inquisition from a cross section of embittered journalists in Ashanti region under the umbrella name "CONCERNED JOURNALIST OF ASHANTI- COJA".

Journalists belonging to the group numbering close to 30 according intelligence gathered by this medium have vowed to see to the dismissal of the KMA PRO following an unfair disbursement of money which was set aside solely for media personnel who registered to take coverage of a recent engagement of Kejetia Validation and Verification Committee- KMA with traders of old Kejetia lorry terminal which was held on Tuesday 11th December 2018.

Authorities of KMA plus the committee's engagement with traders which successfully kick-started around 2:45pm was eclipsed at its latter part by a moody and aggrieved facial expressions on the part of media personnel who took coverage of the meeting after they discovered that money "SOLI" offered by authorities to cover their(Journalists) sitting allowance was not fairly distributed by the Public Relations Officer Mr Godwin Okumah Nyame.

INSIDE STORY

According to some scores of top journalists who spoke to this medium, they claim that they saw the chairman of Kejetia Validation and Verification Committee Nana Agyenim Boateng giving out a physical cash of GH 7,500 directly to the PRO to sought out media personnel present during the engagement.

Prior to the foregoing, KMA Boss Hon Osei Assibey according to them had earlier (in the middle of the event) released an alleged amount of GH 5000 making GH12,500 for the sorting of media persons as sitting allowance according to the number of registered journalists.

Close to 35 number of Journalists who were waiting patiently amidst anticipation of a weightier allowance "SOLI" received the shock of their profession when they realized that their sitting allowance was slashed down to GH 50 per head.

Executives of Concerned Journalist of Ashanti premised on the foregoing are of the suspicion that PRO Mr Okumah Nyame during the said event swerved and pocketed the balance of the hefty amount of money to his own advantage and should therefore be dismissed for siphoning monies meant for the press.

MAYOR'S GH5000 MEDIA "SOLI"

According to another intelligence, some media folks claimed they sighted some staff of the PRO department enveloping the media "SOLI" in a mini van before the close of the event which originally should have been given out to registered houses but shockingly none of these envelopes were handed to them(Journalist).

In a press release copied to THE PRESS RADIO, Executives of COJA are challenging the PRO for KMA to publicly give a breakdown on the media sitting allowance covering the two chapters of monies taken from Nana Agyenim Boateng and that of KMA Boss.

"I was there when Nana Agyenim Boateng was giving GH 7,500 to the PRO of KMA. I was not told. I saw it with my very eyes" David Amoateng; a journalist challenged.

"This is not the first time. He has been swerving our "soli" into his pocket and his is always provoked anytime we challenge him. He doesn't even allow us to pen down the amount he gives to us anytime we sign for our "Soli". I think he must be transferred to a different district" one journalist chanted.

ACCOUNTABILITY

They are again questioning the PRO on the state of the monies they enveloped before he (PRO) approached Nana Agyenim Boateng for the additional GH7,500.

"What happened to those envelopes, what restrained him from sharing the envelopes and if he did, who were the recipients?" they inquired.

The group is again calling on Hon Osei Assibey, KMA Boss to effect the immediate dismissal of the PRO else they (journalists in the region) will distance themselves from all activities of KMA.