There is a growing discontent among members of the Civil and Local Government Staff Association, Ghana (CLOGSAG), following revelations that some executives have been listed as beneficial owners of a hotel fully funded and owned by the union.
The Executive Secretary of CLOGSAG, Isaac Bampoe Addo, and the association’s former President, Dr. Evans Agbeme Dzikum, have been listed as beneficial owners of Pempamsie Hotel Limited located in Cape Coast, much to the shock and surprise of members.
The revelations, which emerged from The Fourth Estate’s searches conducted at the Office of the Registrar of Companies (ORC), have sparked anger among members of the union over alleged abuse of office, diversion of funds, and lack of transparency in the management of union-owned businesses.
CLOGSAG operates a number of income-generating ventures, including the CLOGSAG Band, the Nathan Quao Auditorium, and the Pempamsie Hotel.
These businesses were set up with members’ dues to provide welfare support and financial stability for civil and local government workers.
But several members told The Fourth Estate they have received paltry payments in membership benefits despite years of contributions, leaving many questioning how their dues are being managed.
Pempamsie Hotel Limited was incorporated in 2012 as a private company limited by shares and began operations in August 2013.
According to its incorporation documents, the company’s entire shareholding (100%) is held by CLOGSAG, which owns 100,000 equity shares valued at GHC100,000.
However, ORC records also show that Mr. Bampoe Addo and Dr. Dzikum are listed as beneficial owners of the hotel, with rights of appointment, removal, and voting. The beneficial owner of a company is the natural person who ultimately owns, controls, or benefits from the company, even if his/her name does not formally appear in the company’s legal records.
Mr. Bampoe and Dr. Dzikum registered themselves as beneficial owners of Pempamsie Hotel in 2022. At the time, Mr. Bampoe Addo was serving as Executive Secretary, a position he has held since 2011.
Dr. Dzikum, who was Vice President of CLOGSAG between 2011 and 2018, became President in 2019 until his retirement in 2023. Beyond his union role, Dr. Dzikum also served as Chief Director at the Ministry of Defence under President Akufo-Addo’s administration.
A group of aggrieved CLOGSAG members says the two men had no right or mandate to register themselves as beneficial owners of a business owned by the association.
“This is very bad, and it is a complete abuse of office, pure injustice,” the group’s spokesperson, Prince Latif Oyekunle, told The Fourth Estate.
He said union leadership was meant to prioritize members’ welfare but had instead been “characterized by shared greed.”
“How can the Executive Secretary and former President list themselves as beneficial owners of property owned by the entire union, if not because of selfish interest?” he asked.
The members further alleged unauthorized withdrawal of funds from the association’s accounts, diversion of proceeds from the CLOGSAG Band and Nathan Quao Auditorium, and the running of union businesses for personal gain.
“These are assets financed by the collective dues of civil and local government workers. The profits should go back to the members, not into private pockets,” Mr. Oyekunle added.
The association, which has over 100,000 members nationwide, receives not less than GHC3 million monthly in dues, according to sources.
Legal practitioner Kofi Bentil told The Fourth Estate that the listing of CLOGSAG executives as beneficial owners of a company wholly owned by the union raises significant legal and ethical red flags.
“If the union owns the business 100%, then nobody else can be a beneficial owner of it,” he explained. “If someone is listed separately as a beneficial owner, it’s either a clerical error or a red flag.”
He explained that a beneficial owner is the ultimate person who enjoys the control and economic benefits of a business, even if not listed as a shareholder.
“If the business is funded by union dues, then union members are the rightful beneficiaries, not individual leaders,” he added.
Where union executives intentionally register themselves as beneficial owners of union property, Mr. Bentil said, it could constitute a breach of fiduciary duty or even criminal conduct.
“If they used their position to take proceeds from what doesn’t belong to them, that’s a criminal act. They can be prosecuted and jailed. The union or its members can sue to recover any benefits wrongly taken,” he said.
The aggrieved members are demanding an independent external audit of all CLOGSAG assets and businesses to ensure transparency. They are also calling for the removal of all private beneficial ownership claims over union property and a comprehensive briefing to members on the true financial standing of the association.
“The dues we pay monthly must be protected. We deserve to know how our money and assets are being used,” Mr. Oyekunle said.
Checks by The Fourth Estate at the ORC revealed that Pempamsie Hotel Limited has not complied with statutory filing requirements.
Since its incorporation in 2012, the company has only filed annual returns once. This was in 2018, and even that filing was incomplete.
The Fourth Estate made multiple efforts to obtain responses from the Executive Secretary, Mr Bampoe Addo, but calls and messages went unanswered.
He also did not respond to a request for interview submitted to his office.
Former President Dr. Dzikum acknowledged receipt of our questions but is yet to respond to our questions.
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Source: myjoyonline.com
