Eric Adjei is the Acting CEO of NEIP
The Acting Chief Executive Officer of the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP), Eric Adjei, has recounted the challenges he has faced from some staff members since assuming his role.
Speaking in an interview on Radio XYZ on February 24, 2025, Eric Adjei stated that a staff member secretly recorded him during a meeting with workers aimed at addressing pressing issues.
He further stated that an internal memo regarding the suspension of staff due to legal issues was also leaked to outsiders.
According to him, those responsible, who seemingly remain loyal to the former management, did so to create a negative impression among the public.
“… They have pushed me to the wall and I will talk for them to hear. They leaked an internal memo I issued to them. Could you believe the last management meeting I had with the staff was being recorded by one of them? One of them was recording the meeting I had with the workers. Where are they recording it to and for what? I can’t be safe in my own office because they believe they own allegiance to someone so they won’t help to serve the country,” he disclosed.
He further disclosed that some appointment letters issued to temporary staff by the former management stated that they would receive three months’ salaries upon termination of their contracts, despite not being enrolled on a payroll or having their salaries specified.
He asserted that this was a clear violation of labor laws.
“… How can you state in an employment letter that workers will receive a three-month severance package upon termination when you did not even specify their monthly salary? They were only being paid allowances, which is illegal,” he added.
Meanwhile, the former CEO of the National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP), Kofi Ofosu Nkansah, has firmly denied allegations of any wrongdoing regarding the recruitment of certain staff members, who the new acting CEO has temporarily suspended.
He stated that there were existing gaps within the institution, specifically highlighting the human resource department and a non-existing procurement department, which he claimed hindered the institution’s eligibility for World Bank programs and its ability to secure funding.
Ofosu Nkansah further explained that in order to address and resolve these challenges, the management decided to employ temporary staff to fill the existing gaps, ensuring the institution’s efficiency in carrying out its duties.
“On the NEIP HR issues, nothing illegal was done. When I took over, there were HR gaps we had to fill to qualify us for our World Bank Programmes because there wasn’t even a Procurement Unit. So, we filled those gaps with temporary staff and put them on allowances. Allowances are not illegal. You don’t pay SSNIT on allowances. You only pay PAYE and it was done,” he said in a Facebook post on February 23, 2025.
MAG/AE
Meanwhile, watch as Joseph Yammin warns NDC MPs over apologizing for Ken Ofori-Atta’s house raid