FORTY-THREE teachers in the East Mamprusi District of the Northern Region have petitioned the Serious Fraud Office and the Bureau of National Investigations to investigate the illegal deductions of a total of GH¢10,320 from their salaries.
In a four-page petition signed by 37 of the teachers and made available to the Daily Graphic, they alleged that a company, known as Ranaf Associates Limited, had made various deductions from their salaries through the Controller and Accountant General’s Department.
The teachers said the withdrawals were made under the cloak of supplying them with some goods, even though they claimed they had not signed any agreement with the company for the supply of any consumer items.
The alleged deductions took place between September 2008 and March 2009, during which period various sums of money, ranging from GH¢25 to GH¢65, were deducted from each teacher’s salary.
While some of them had their money deducted for up to five months, others had their deductions lasting for six months.
The teachers alleged that the deductions were made through the support of a colleague teacher, identified only as Mr Ayikambe.
“We cannot understand why we should suffer this severe indictment since we never bought anything from the company,” the petition stated.
The teachers said they had made efforts to contact the staff of the company and an alleged accomplice, but that had yielded little results.
They said the nature of the deductions had given them reasons to suspect that the culprits had planned a grand conspiracy to dupe them.
The teachers said the regional secretariat of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) had informed them that the owner of the company had agreed to pay back 50 per cent of the total amount deducted and to defray the remaining balance in the subsequent month.
They said, however, that they were yet to receive the money even though information they received had indicated that the money had been paid.
The teachers further alleged that the document that sanctioned the deductions was signed by the East Mamprusi District Director of Education.
They said the director seemed not to have interest in knowing how and who signed the documents when contacted, adding that this was a clear demonstration of diabolism, lose administration, abuse of power and incompetence.
They again noted that due to the lackadaisical attitude of the district director of education and the GNAT secretariat, they were uncertain whether their money would be repaid.
The teachers, therefore, entreated the SFO to get the Controller and Accountant General’s Department to produce “vivid and comprehensive copies of the documents that were forwarded to them to effect the deductions.”
They said this would enable them ascertain who authorised the deductions and for what purpose, adding that all those found culpable should be dealt with, whilst the money were refunded.
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