Welder Harassment Of School Authorities, Workers in Madina Allegations Are Lies & Fake News—Headmaster Of Umar BunHatab Islamic Basic School Punches
In an interview with the Soireenews.com on Tuesday January 9, 2024, Mr Imoro Suleiman stressed that no welder and contractor have stormed the school to harass them by way of demanding his payment for the work done.
Freeman Koryekpor 
HEAD MASTER of Umar Bun Hatab Islamic Basic School located in Madina West Zongo of the Greater Accra Region, Mr Imoro Suleiman has responded to allegations made by the media suggesting that the Welder, Mr Abdul Latif harassed authorities and workers of the school over the Member of Parliament (MP) of the area, Honourable Francis-Xavier Sosu's failure to pay for fixing of the gate of the school.
In an interview with the Soireenews.com on Tuesday January 9, 2024, Mr Imoro Suleiman stressed that no welder and contractor have stormed the school to harass them by way of demanding his payment for the work done.
"Indeed l know where the welder lives and where he works but l haven't had any direct interaction with the welder. And that there is no point in time l have seen the welder on our campus to harass anyone school authority and I am speaking as the headteacher of the school.
"I have never spoken to anyone called Abdul Latif. My attention has been drawn to the news publication just in the late evening on Monday January 8, 2024 and l have not even spoken to any journalist in that regard,' the headmaster stressed.
The headmaster statement was in a response to the media reports suggesting that the authorities and workers of a school are reeling in frustration over their MP, Francis-Xavier Sosu’s failure to pick their calls or pay for the services of a contractor he reportedly contracted to fix their gate for them.
The media reported on Monday January 8,2024, which suggested that the reports in the school have it that there is deep seated disappointment and resentment regarding the issue.
Insiders in the school are disappointed over the Madina MP’s( who is cooling off in the US) refusal to pick calls from the school authorities as well as the welder he contracted.
The issues are that, a welder who was contacted by the MP to provide the school, UMAR BUN KHATAB, with a new gate has long completed his work but has still not been paid and he has been harassing the school’s management.
All attempts to get the MP to pay for service of the person he contacted to provide the school with the gate has proved futile.
The worry of the school now is the continuous harassment of the school authorities for payment by the contractor.
According to him, he has been to the MP’ house on countless occasions, but to no avail, neither would the people in the house tell him the MP is out of the country.
Several attempts by the school authorities to get in touch with the MP on the matter have fallen on deaf ears.
This issue, according to school authorities, is affecting academic performance because the welder goes to the school ostensibly to disturb the peace of the students, thereby distracting academic activities in the school.
Preview to the speculations, the Madina Constituency Deputy Organiser of the NDC, who doubles as Head of Business in Madina MP’s office, Timothy Nnyuieke Thatchroot on behalf of the MP in an interview with the Soireenews.com set the record straight.
According to him, there is no truth in the reports describing the misinformation story as and fake news, saying that it was a calculated attempt being hatched by detractors led by disqualified NDC parliamentary candidate hopeful for Madina, Mr Prince Moses Zakaria, who announced his readiness to run as an independent candidate in the 2024 elections to tarnish the image of the MP to score their political points.
He stressed that the fake news should be treated with the contempt it deserves.
"Our attention has been drawn to some malicious media reportage which suggest that Honourable Francis-Xavier Sosu has refused to pay for a welder contracted to fix the gates for the Umar Bun Hatab Islamic Basic School Madina-Accra located in Madina West Zongo.
“I wish to state for the records that this news reportage is absolutely false and misleading. It is a Luciferian conspiracy hatched obviously by some unscrupulous persons allegedly aligned to disqualified NDC parliamentary candidate hopeful for Madina, Mr Prince Moses Zakaria, who announced his readiness to run as an independent candidate in the 2024 elections to vitiate our MP hard earned political reputation,” Mr Timothy Nnyuieke Thatchroot has said in an interview.
He has further emphasized that the MP is not distracted by these malevolent schemes but remains focused and working hard to ensure a resounding victory for the NDC in the December 7 2024 polls.
"I know, the Welder Abdul Latif very well, he is our loyal client who has done many works for us and MP and l know him very well because l have stayed in his house before. So when the story broke out l know for sure that it was another falsehood being perpetrated by our detractors led Mr Prince Moses Zakaria.
"I can bet my life on it to state that it was the independent candidate, Mr Prince Moses Zakaria who caused this story to be done against our MP," he alleged.
He noted that "in fact when we started this project in the Umar Bun Hatab Islamic Basic School in Madina some known supporters and sympathizers of Mr Prince Moses Zakaria have been pooh-pooh this project by way of saying that the NDC can never done this work.
"They have said the who lots of things against this project. But because they have seen that the school project has been done successfully and almost in completion stage, l sure that that is why they have tried evil plans to tarnish the image of the MP against the project in the media but they have failed," Mr Thatchroot stated.
He stressed that "I can assure all the Madina, especially parents and students of the school that the MP wish well for all the people in Madina and the school and l believe that this project which was funded by the MP through his share of District Assemblies Common Fund would be completed.
According to Mr Thatchroot, "In fact we are working on the phase two of the project which is to complete the second storey building of the school. So you should be distracted at all by any fake or mislead publication from the enemies of the MP.
"This is absolutely falsehood, l am stressing that no welder has gone to the school to harass the workers and authorities of the school for not being paid for his work done because when l consulted the management of the school they denied even seeing the welder on the school campus," Mr Thatchroot stressed.
He admitted that the MP had awarded the contract to the contractor for the wall to be erected and the gate also fixed for which the work was done by the contractor, adding that the MP has funded the project through his share of District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF).
He said the welder, Abdul Latif was also being contracted by the contractor to fix the gate of the school.
He indicated that the funding of the project is coming from the District Assemblies Common Fund for which part of the payment has been made through the Assembly to pay the contractor for the work done so far.
He confirmed that there is still outstanding balance to be paid to the contractor, but "l would like to state on authority that there is no instance where the welder, Mr Abdul Latif has gone to the school to harass the authorities and workers to demand payment of outstanding balance.
He indicated that on Monday January 8, 2024 even the Welder himself called him via telephone and denied his knowledge of the said fake publication being done by the destractors of MP including the independent candidate and his followers.
He said the welder told him on the authority that he has never gone to the school to demand the payment of his work done.
According to Mr Thatchroot, this was not the first project Mr Abdul Latif is doing for the MP, recalling that he has worked with them to fix the broken down bridge located at Baba Yara area in Madina.
The Madina Constituency Deputy Organiser of the NDC indicated that the Welder is a loyal client to the MP and some of the constituency executives of Madina.
He indicated that there is no way Mr Abdul Latif would do something without informing the very people who had contracted him to do the work in the school.
"Because definitely it is not the school that contracted Mr Abdul Latif to fix the gate, so l think that linking the welder to this fake publication was absolutely worry, Mr Thatchroot defended Mr Abdul Latif.
He pointed out that the headmaster of the school has also denied that the welder has never steps his foot at the school to harass them to demand any payment.
He stressed that "We are very aware that the publication is the pure hand work of the MP's detractors who are still at work."
To authenticate the matter further, the Soireenews.com has also interviewed the Welder Abdul Latif.
He told the news outlet that since he finished the fixing of the gate for the past four months, he has never gone to the premises of the school.
He stressed that "l haven't gone to the school to harass the authorities and workers of the school as being claimed in the media reports,"adding that l don't even know the headmaster of the school and even spoke to him before."
Mr Abdul Latif was quick to state that he suspected the Coordinator of NDC Madina Zongo Caucus Masawudu Barki for being the brain behind the fake publication.
He revealed that a couple weeks ago when he went to the funeral in the Medina Zongo just in front of the Madina Central Mosque, Mr Masawudu Barki also with some supporters of the NDC came.
He noted that he is being introduced to Mr Masawudu Barki by one man who said he was the welder who has worked on the AstroTurf park at Madina and the gate of the school.
Following this development, Mr Abdul Latif noted that Mr Masawudu Barki has quickly asked him that has the MP paid him for the work he has contracted to do on the gate of the school.
Mr Abdul Latif noted that he responded politely that they have not paid him yet but there are arrangements for the payment to be done to me."
He said quickly Masawudu Barki has taken the issue personal and started shouting mentioning the name of the MP in the full glare of the crowds.
"However, l have approached Masawudu Barki and told him (Masawudu Barki) that what was his problem because l told you that we are in the payment agreement term and they would pay me. So not knowing Masawudu Barki and other supporters of the NDC in the area are having problems with the MP because they wanted to push their independent candidate. So l didn't know that it was that agenda that Masawudu Barki is pursuing that is why Yakubu got furious about the MP for not paying me," Mr Abdul Latif explained.
Mr Abdul Latif pointed that he was pointing accusing fingers at Mr Masawudu Barki because it was Yakubu that l have this conversation with.
"I am very worried and surprised to hear in the yesterday Monday January 8, 2024 in news suggesting that l have gone to harass the authorities and workers of the school for the MP's refusal to pick my calls or pay for my work that l have done.
He stressed that these claims made in the publication are certainly untrue, saying that l have not even called the MP neither has gone to the house of the MP to look for him to demand any payment.
"It is never true l have been to the school, l don't even know the headmaster of the school, since l have fixed the gate in the school for the past four months now, l haven't been there again. I have never called the MP and l didn't even know the contact number of the MP. If l wanted to call for something on the project it was only Mr Timothy Nnyuieke Thatchroot l called. And l remembered that l have called Mr Timothy Nnyuieke two weeks ago and asked him of how far with the payment of the money.
"And that Mr Timothy Nnyuieke told me that his is still working with the La Nkwantanang Madina - Municipal Assembly (LaNMMA)
and that it would release some money to him to pay me, that was all," Mr Abdul Latif further disclosed.
He maintained that these are lies peddling by Mr Yakubu and his pay master to brining the confusion between him and the MP.
He emphasised that "l would like to use this opportunity to call on the residents and supporters of the NDC in the area to ignore this spurious publication.
This, according to him, was because the MP is a good person who is currently working with the key stakeholders to improve the living conditions of constituents in Madina.
The key personalities in Madina who were incharge of the project in the school have spoken to the Soireenews.com.
They described the media reports as baseless and unfounded saying that the media report was one sided story being cooked, ostensibly to destroy the long age relationship between the MP and management of the school.
They noted that they have contracted the Welder, Abdul Latif to fix the gate of the school, saying that there are in the proper engagement with the MP to impress upon the Assembly to release the money to pay the welder for his work done.
