A citizen of the Republic of Ghana, Mr Eric Edem Agbana has sued the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), Dr Kofi Koduah Sarpong.
The suit filed at the Supreme Court is seeking among other reliefs a declaration that Dr Sarpong’s continuous stay in office as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) after attaining the age of sixty-five years is in breach of Article 199(1) and (4) of the 1992 constitution.
Mr Agbana is also seeking an order for the Defendant to pay back to the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation all salaries, allowances and benefits he obtained from the GNPC from the date of attaining the age of sixty–five years to date.
He further wants an order from the apex court for the Defendant to resign immediately from his position as CEO of the GNPC.
What does Article 199 (1) & (4) say?
Article 199 relates to the retiring age and pension of public officers.
Article 199 (1) states that: “A public officer shall, except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, retire from the public service on attaining the age of sixty years” while Article 199 (4) states that: “The President may, subject to such conditions as he thinks fit delegate some of his functions under this article by directions in writing to the Police Council or to a committee or to a member of the Council”.
GNPC Appointment
In February 2017, President Nana Akufo-Addo appointed Sarpong as Acting chief executive officer of GNPC. He replaced Alex Mould who had served as CEO since 2013.
Until his appointment, Dr Sarpong was the Chair of the Board of Directors of Royal Bank. Dr Sarpong has served in a number of executive, non-executive and advisory positions in many organisations, including the GCB Bank, the Merchant Bank among others.
Dr Sarpong is a Chartered Accountant, and holds a PhD in Industrial and Business Studies from the University of Warwick; M.Acc in International Accounting and Finance from the University of Glasgow. Dr Sarpong is also an alumnus of the University of Ghana Business School having obtained his MBA and B.Sc (Administration) in Accounting, from the school.