.Acts As Referee For NDC Job Hunter!

It may rank as the possibly the first in the history of Ghana, but President John Evans Atta Mills has set himself up as a referee for a prospective job seeker in the public services.

Officials of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) headquarters were surprised when, a couple of months ago, the vociferous, onetime spokesperson of Dr. Ekwow Spio Garbrah and the former features editor of the Ghana Palaver, Mr. Eric Kwame Ametor walked into the offices of the NHIA with his application letter in one hand, and a reference letter in the other.

He has come, he said, for a job, and his references were from the President!

"How can you turn away somebody who comes looking for a job with the President as his referee? We gave him the job," one member of the interview panel told this newspaper.

Ametor Kwame has since been employed as the Head of Cooperate Affairs of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA). Apart from President John Evans Atta Mills, his other referee was the political shark Mr. Ato Ahwoi, a leading member of the NDC and the man seen by many as the true power behind the Mills throne!

"This is abuse of office," an industrial relations expert told this newspaper yesterday. "Its like going to look for a job in a company holding a recommendation from the owner of the company himself. No civil or public servant would dare to turn you away."

Ametor, a diehard member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) who was also the Deputy Communications Director to the Atta Mills 2008 Campaign team, and one time vociferous critic of government over exactly similar conduct in the past, applied the for the job which was never advertised any in of the national dallies.

Reached for his comment, Ametor could not deny whether he used the names or not but said referees are there to attest to your competence and character adding that "I will add Jesus" if I had the chance.