Yankey still ECOWAS Bank President

....without Ghana Gov’t support

The President of the ECOWAS Bank, Dr. George Sipa Yankey has won a suit filed against the ECOWAS Secretariat. The suit was filed at an Abuja court to challenge the Secretariat’s implementation of a directive from Ghana government to terminate his appointment as President of the ECOWAS Bank.

This was after the NPP government announced the withdrawal of support for Dr. Yankey as President of ECOWAS Bank, citing his alleged involvement in the Quality Grains Scandal as the basis for taking that action.

The move generated controversy in the sub-region although Dr. Yankey was still at post. The ruling means that Dr. Yankey will remain at post despite the obvious lack of government support.

It will be recalled that the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government terminated the appointment of Dr George Sipa-Adjah Yankey as the President of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID). The termination of his appointment follows the withdrawal of Ghana Government’s support for him.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Hackman Owusu-Agyemang, had disclosed that the government’s withdrawal of support for Dr Yankey follows its interest in the position of Executive Secretary of ECOWAS. He had said the Ghana government had told member states of ECOWAS of its unflinching support for the candidature of Dr Mohammed Ibn Chambas, Member of Parliament for Bimbilla, for the position of ECOWAS Executive Secretary and could, therefore, not support Dr Yankey.

The Government was said to have written to the Chairman of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, which terminated the appointment of Dr Yankey. The letter of dismissal from the ECOWAS secretariat dated April 23, 2001 noted that the termination of his appointment takes effect from May 31, 2001.

Dr Yankey however challenged the authority of the said body to terminate his appointment in an Abuja court.

Dr. Yankey, 49, holds a Ph. D. in International Finance and Investment Law from Warwick University in England.