A QUERY by the Ghana School Aid (GSA), a UK-based NGO last November to the head teacher of Abore District Assembly JSS among other 14 JSS head teachers across the country has exposed former Member of Parliament for Amansie West constituency, Mr. Stephen Cobbinah Buor-Karikari.

Last year the GSA under its GSA Two Degrees West Longitude Project 2003/4 donated some educational and sports materials together with a set of musical band instruments to 15 selected schools in the country through its Ghana rep Mr. Michael Asiedu alias Nana Atta Nuamah III.

As the MP for Amansie West, Buor-Karikari is said to have personally agreed to deliver the items for Abore JSS in July 2004.

Four months later (November 2004) GSA was compelled to write to the beneficiary schools to enquire whether they had received the items or not.

As at November 2004, only the head teacher of Sorbelle D/A Primary School near Tumu in the Upper west region had acknowledged receipt of the materials.

According to Asiedu acknowledgement of receipts would have gone to encourage the British donor friends to continue with the good works to assist Ghanaian schools.

Alarm bells began to ring upon the receipt of the query as it became Obvious that Buro Karikari had diverted the items. The queen mother of Abore, Nana Takyiwaa took it upon herself to find out where the items had gone. She has failed to make any headway into her probe as former MP Buor-Karikari has avoided her since she (queen mother) left word for him to meet on the matter.

Nana Takyiwaa has also not succeeded linking up with the GSA rep in Accra to ascertain the quantity of items donated to the school.

She has been to Room 18 of Social Welfare department and also gone to 13 Trinity Road in East Legon in Accra as directed trying to get in touch with the GSA rep for further enquiries about the donation in vain.

Chronicle has gathered that fearing being exposed, the former MP some months ago quickly ordered the manufacture of some of the items locally by artisans at the Suame magazine in Kumasi to replace the original items.

But he (MP) has reportedly declined to meet with concerned authorities to provideanswers to raised questions as to why the conveyance of the items from Accra to Abore had to delay.

Suspecting a shortage and inferior items, the Unit Committee, the Gyasehene and the Assemblyman Mr. Douglas Frimpong have taken up the matter to verify the nature of the donation.

It is believed that the Mansoman Secondary School at Manso Atwere, the MP's hometown, received a similar donation of items at the SSS level from GSA. They have, therefore, initiated moves to check there and compare the quality of the items.

More on Buor-Karikari as a lecturer at University of Cape Coast soon