Workers of the National Lottery Authority (NLA) and officials of Lotto Marketing companies have demonstrated against the Director-General of the National Lottery Authority, Kofi Osei Ameyaw, and his deputy Yaw Amoakohene Baafi, over their abysmal performance in office.
They are demanding the immediate dismissal of the director-general and his deputy thus, called on the president of Ghana, Nana Akufo Addo to act fast to save the organization from turmoil. Clad in red armbands, the staff members numbering about 50 and lotto marketing operators chanted war songs amidst dancing and clapping.
They alleged that some of their members have received threats and in some instances been attacked due to the development.
“We are sending a message that we are not on strike. We are not demonstrating, we are just removing ourselves from the dangers that we see because our workers are being attacked,” General Secretary for the Financial, Business, and Services Employees Union of the NLA, Benjamin Mingle explained.
Giving further details, Mr. Mingle said a letter has since been sent to the Labour Commission to explain the reasons for the development and the way forward.
According to him, workers will continue to withdraw their services until all concerns are addressed.
“NLA staff are being attacked in various regions by people who claim they have won and they have not been paid their wins.
“We thought it was one exception. However what has happened is that I got a report from Kumasi that from October last year up to February, NLA owes wins to the tune of about GH¢1.5 million. So the question is, why?
“But that aside, now the workers are being attacked physically and we realized that we have to do something about it. They claim they have reported to management so we wrote a letter on the 22nd of February and asked to meet so we can find solutions to these challenges.”
He said, the refusal of management to honor the letter written was the push members needed to take matter into their own hands.
“We came on Friday, as dated. We went to the MD’s office, he was present. We waited for 30 minutes, only to be told he has gone for a meeting.
“What is important is that he received the letter and the content actually showed that we should have met but to safeguard the interest of the work and our members we are removing ourselves from the work because the workers are being threatened and in fact in one instance the police had to rescue some of the workers in Tamale,” he said.
The association of Lotto Marketing Company in a petition to President Akufo Addo pleaded with him to sack the Deputy Director General of NLA, Yaw Amoakohene Baafi over his abysmal performance. It said his total contribution to the progress of the organization has been totally abysmal to the disappointment of the LMCS.
The petitioned signed by its national Chairman Dan Mensah, Nana A.K. Boa Amponsam , Vice president and Sam Yeboah deputy general secretary noted that “ the deputy director-general at many occasions sought to create confusion among our members and to break our front by inciting a section of our members, members of staff and some management personnel who are known to be adversaries of the current government to engage in constant agitations against the management of which he is also part on flimsy excuses.
