Mr Nurudin Ahmed Tetteh (middle) and other regional representatives addressing the media

‘Investigate recent appointments at NSS Secretariat’

Theresah Esson & Dennis Agyei Boateng Jan - 06 - 2017 , 09:59

Support staff of the National Service Secretariat (NSS) have appealed to the incoming government to review all last- minute appointments made by the current management of the service.

The 125 support staff from seven regions of the country, including Greater Accra, Central, Upper East, Northern and Ashanti regions, expressed worry over the recent appointments made by the acting Executive Director of the secretariat, Dr Michael Kpessa-Whyte, describing them as “nepotism and ethnocentric.”

Appointment letters

Addressing journalists at a press conference in Accra on Tuesday, the Central Regional representative of the support staff, Mr Nurudin Ahmed Tetteh, said Dr Kpessa-Whyte had and was issuing appointment letters to people against assurances he had given to the current staff of the NSS who had served the secretariat and the country for the past eight years to be engaged as permanent workers.

“The current support staff were given assurance by the secretariat through our regional directors that should there be any opportunities for permanent recruitment, we would be considered first,” he said.

The denial

According to the support staff, that agreement has not been kept by the head and management of the secretariat, adding that “the secretariat has gone on an employment spree and is issuing appointment letters and these appointments are for his National Democratic Congress (NDC) party and family members.”

Allegations

Explaining further, Mr Tetteh said some of the new appointees completed their national service last year, while others were yet to complete their extension.

According to the support staff, Dr Kpessa-Whyte contracted a private recruitment firm to make recruitments at a whopping cost of GH¢100,000 with an infantile excuse that the scheme had not got the capacity to recruit.

In view of this, Mr Tetteh said the actions of the acting Executive Director depicted abuse of power, authority and gross disrespect to the Public Services Commission (PSC) which orders to recruit the support staff had been defied by the latest recruitment process.