The Board of Directors of the Tema Oil Refinery, TOR, Ghana’s premier refinery has interdicted two executives of the General Transport, Petroleum Workers’ Union over the controversial TOR -Torentco deal.
The Board took the decision to interdict Serwah Duncan -Williams and Anthony Koomson who are executives of GTPCWU at the refinery at their 261st sitting on December 13, 2023.
The two executives were issued with query letters for allegedly speaking to the media about the Tema Oil Refinery and Torentco Asset Management Limited partnership deal and making some comments that sought to bring the reputation of the refinery into disrepute in October 2023.
This portal understands that the executives in response to the queries denied the claims by the Board.
Sources within the refinery told this portal that on October 4, 2023, the Union held an emergency meeting with their members which was attended by the national executives.
According to our sources, at that meeting the national leadership updated the members on the ongoing TOR-Torentco (now Tema Energy and Processing Limited) and exposed the actions of some staff who registered an entity named TOR Workers Charity Trust on the blind side of the entire workforce to champion TOR -Torentco deal.
Sources within the refinery explained that the national chairman of the Union, Brother Bernard Owusu after engaging the workers addressed the press infront of the refinery and not Serwaa Duncan-Williams and Anthony Koomson as claimed by TOR Board.
The two executives, this portal understands stated categorically in their engagement with the workers and updating them on the issue was based on Whistle Blowers Act 2006, Act 720 Section 1,2&3 pages 3 &4.
However, in a letter signed by the Acting Managing Director, Daniel Osei Kofi Appiah, on the orders of the Board sighted by energynewsafrica.com, it said the Board reviewed the responses of the executives to the queries and found them unacceptable.
According to the letter, the company therefore made a decision to initiate the disciplinary process with further investigations into all the allegations they made.
The Board accused the executives of divulging company information to persons not authorized to receive it, in breach of Article 43(4) (vii) of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between TOR and GTPCWU of GTUC dated 13th February 2018.
“Your breach of the non-disclosure agreement sighted on April,2023, in which you undertook not to disclose the details of the draft TOR /Torentco Lease and O&M agreements. Giving details of TOR’s draft lease agreement with Tema Energy Processing Limited (TEPL) to the press and print media.
“Using without lawful authority any property or facility provided by the Company for some purpose (media hosting) not connected with the Employee’s official duties , in breach of Article 43 (4)(ii) of the CBA between TOR and GTPCWU of GTUC dated 13th February, 2018.”
The company, therefore, invoked Article 43 Section 11 of the Collective Agreement, to interdict the two executives.
“Per the above provisions, you are hereby served notice of interdiction from duty with effect from January 10th, 2024, to enable the Company proceed with unhampered investigations ,” the letter said.
Source:https://energynewsafrica.com/
