Professor Amin Alhassan, the Director-General of the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) has informed the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament that there is no freeze on staff promotion at the State Broadcaster.

He said in line with the Public Services Commission’s guidelines, promotion at GBC was based on the availability of vacancies.

Prof Alhassan stated this at the public hearing of PAC in Accra, when Dr James Klutse Avedzi, the Chairman of PAC, asked him why they had frozen staff promotion process at the Corporation.

The Director-General was at PAC to respond to issues concerning GBC that were raised in the 2021 Report of the Auditor-General.

Prof Alhassan explained that it was a Board issue that Management took up; saying “now we haven’t put a freeze on promotion”.

“Promotion is based on vacancies, before you promote someone there must be an existing vacancy.”

He noted that for them to promote staff there must be existing vacancies.

He said with the approval of the new organogram and the work on the new Scheme of Service ongoing, the Board decided that this year, they would not do the promotion because the existing vacancies had not been confirmed.

“So, there is no freeze, it is only one year, and if for example, the Scheme of Service is completed in the next two or three months, we should be able to argue for the promotion process to keep in, but there is no freeze on promotion.” He said.

Dr Avedzi: “At least there is a freeze for one year.”

Prof Alhassan: “We still think that it is possible, Mr Chairman, that we might have the promotions, if the process of Scheme of Service is done and we do the necessary establishment and it is approved by the Public Services Commission, we will go ahead and do that.”

The Director-General reiterated that in line with the guidelines of the Public Services Commission, one could not be promoted unless there was a vacancy; declaring that “and if there is no vacancy, you stay there”.

The Director-General was accompanied by Mr Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, the Minister of Information.