GNPC workers expose Board Chairman

Following media reports of pronouncements by the Board Chairman of Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC)Mr. Felix Addo on the company’s financial state, workers of have denied reports making rounds that the regulatory body is broke.

According to the workers who spoke to this reporter on condition of anonymity, the corporation is financially grounded.

The workers are therefore livid with GNPC’s board chairman Mr. Felix Addo who recently said the corporation is in “financial difficulties” due to a drop in oil prices and the temporal non-production from the Jubilee oil fields, hence the need to hold on with their Voltaian Basin activities.

Some the GNPC staff have questioned the motive behind the chairman’s statement since what is in the books of the corporation paints a positive picture. To most of them, the assertion gives the GNPC a bad image to investors and outsiders.

“This is uncalled for in corporate governance,” a senior worker stated. “We are completely scandalised to read about it in the media, and it is unfortunate.”

The workers were full of praise for the Ato Ahwoi-led board, arguing that it “never did anything like that but rather instilled hopes and worked towards making GNPC a force in the oil and gas business to achieve its sole objective.”

Also, the workers complained about the board chair abandoning Ato Ahwoi’s plan for a corporate headquarters in favor of a fishy energy city plan which even Parliament did not support and was rejected by the Ato Ahwoi led board on numerous occasions. According to one aggrieved worker, the lack of a corporate headquarters is “hampering the company’s efforts in recruiting the suitable personnel” for GNPC’s expansion plan.”

The aggrieved workers opined the board chairman has arrogated to himself the position of an executive chairman which does not augur well for the smooth operations of the company. A section of them lamented the behaviour and “questionable motive” of the board chairman which they believe “is causing a real morale issues among the rank and file of employees of the corporation.”

“His behaviour is also affecting GNPC’s attempts to structure itself to face the challenges and opportunities ahead as not just a national oil company, but as a gas aggregator to facilitate and find solutions to the chronic and persistent power problems the country faces,” a senior staff said.

Per the media report, the GNPC chairman has pushed for the corporation to stop contracting an international firm which is supposed to commence exploratory works in the hope of finding oil and gas in the Voltaian Basin of Ghana.

GNPC, we have learnt had budgeted to spend less than fifty million dollars (US$ 50m) on the search for oil and gas in the Voltaian Basin, but their Board Chairman has argued that the company is not in a position to finance the search, the report added.

According to the staff, the suspension of the US$50m “is unfortunate” since the staff were not informed before the illegalities.

“It appears the chairman acts without consulting even members on the board, and he seems to have issues with several of the staff,” an insider said.