I found my removal from office timely, the environment was toxic – Domelevo
Former Auditor-General, Daniel Yaw Domelevo has stated that unfortunate as the circumstances leading to his removal from office by President Akufo-Addo is, it was “timely”.
Speaking on Upfront, Wednesday, Mr. Domelevo explained that he was happy with the decision to remove him, because the working environment at the time was “toxic.”
“When I was asked to leave office, I felt very good. To me it was timely because to be very honest, I found the environment to be so toxic that it was not worth working in such an environment. So when they said leave, I was just thankful to God and I left,” he said in the interview with told Raymond Acquah.
Mr. Domelevo, however, failed to respond to the question as to whether he thinks he was hounded out of the office while doing his job as the Auditor-General.
He further dismissed thoughts that he bears any grudge against the government due to how he was made to leave office.
“I have nothing against the government and his appointees. I was just doing my job and a time came they said stop and go and I left. So that is it. So there is no bad feeling at all, that’s why some people could not understand me when I went to Christ the King to thank God that I have done what I am supposed to do. So no bad feelings at all. Some people think I should have some ill feelings against the government, I don’t,” he stated.
President Akufo-Addo in March last year asked the then Auditor-General, Daniel Yaw Domelevo to proceed on retirement after he had just returned from a 167-day forced leave.
In a letter signed by Nana Asante Bediatuo, the Secretary to the President said “The attention of the President of the Republic has been drawn to records and documents made available to this Office by the Audit Service, that indicate that your date of birth is June 1, 1960, and that in accordance with article 199 (1) of the Constitution, your date of retirement as Auditor-General was June 1, 2020,” the letter said.
By extension, therefore, “the President is of the view that you have formally left office.”
It added that Johnson Akuamoa-Asiedu will continue to act as Auditor-General until the President appoints a substantive head.
However, President Akufo-Addo later in May last year reiterated that the former Auditor-General, Daniel Yao Domelevo was not hounded out of office.
According to him, Mr. Domelevo’s removal was due to his attainment of the national retirement age of 60.
“There’s a time for retiring which is prescribed by statute, not my making. If you are 60 years old you’re supposed no longer to be able to work in the public service,” he said.
Source: Ghana News
