EXTORTION: POLICE HUNT FOR DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION (PAGE 23)

THE Atebubu-Amantin District Police Command has launched a man-hunt for the District Director of Education Lucas Nsekisi-Nim for allegedly extorting GH¢100 each from 52 newly recruited untrained teachers in the district.
According to the police, Nsekisi-Nim left his duty post when the District Chief Executive (DCE), Mr Sanja Nanja made a report on the alleged extortion to the police.
The District Police Commander,  Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Mr John Adusei, confirmed the story to the Daily Graphic at Atebubu.
He said when he detailed a detective to invite the suspect to the police station to write a statement, he was told that he had left for Accra .
When the Daily Graphic contacted the DCE on the issue, he stated that when he made the report to the police on August 5, this year, for Nsekisi-Nim’s arrest, he had information that the suspect had left for Yeji, the Pru District capital to catch a ferry to cross the Volta Lake to his home town.
Briefing newsmen at Atebubu on the case, Mr Nanja said he received information that the District Director of Education had demanded GH¢150 each from the 52 newly recruited untrained teachers after handing over their appointment letters to them.
He said the district recruited 65 pupil teachers but 52 of them went to the Amanten and Atebubu where they were directed by the District Director to open accounts where their salaries of GH¢140 each would be paid into.
Mr Nanja further stated that apart from demanding GH¢150 from the 52 pupil teachers, the district director also back-dated their appointment letters to February, 2009 whereas they received their appointment letters in April, 2009.
He said initially the District director demanded GH¢150 from each of the 52 pupil teachers, but they pleaded with him that they could afford GH¢100, but he insisted that if they could not pay the money, then they would forfeit their one month salary of GH¢140 each.
Mr Nanja said when the teachers collected their salaries, each of them decided to give the district director GH¢100 but he refused and insisted on the GH¢140 each which was the full nine month’s salary.
He said 18 out of the 52 teachers later went to the District Director’s office and paid the GH¢100 each to his messenger who he had authorised to collect the money on his behalf.
According to the DCE, he later had information about the extortion and invited the messenger to find out whether the director actually asked him to collect the money for him and he confirmed it.
Mr Nanja said he was in his office when the district director returned the money which was in a brief case to him to be given back to the teachers but he refused.
He added that the district director again came to his office in the company of another man to plead on his behalf, but he refused.
Mr Nanja said he, therefore, made a report to the police who invited the suspect for his statement but he was later told that he had left Atebubu for his hometown across the Volta Lake.
Efforts to get Mr Nsekisi-Nim for his side of the story proved futile as he refused to pick the call on his mobile phone and later switched off the phone.