How racist is ACCA? Nearly 50% of its UK membership is non-white. Yet they are not adequately represented amongst ACCA employees, or council. Now ACCA has only one non-white person (Mukesh Gunamal) from the UK on its council even though ethnic minoroties form 50% of the UK membership. ACCA  President casts 20-25% of all the votes. No officeholder, chief executive, director, IFAC or CCAB representative has ever been non-white.

In 1995, Austin Mitchell MP referred two cases of alleged racial discrimination to the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE). These complaints were by two non-white practitioners. Eventually, the ACCA became the first acocuntancy body to be targeted by the CRE forcing it to undertake ethnic monitoring or its disciplinary cases and then the full UK membership. ACCA has never explained to members as to why it became the subject of the CRE attentions.

The ACCA's enthusiam is noted in that the questionairre sent to members in 1998 was not accompanied by any covering letter. Students were also excluded from this survey.

Subsequently, ACCA learnt that the CRE also contacted Prem Sikka (who was not a complainant) and sought information about the history, contemporary practices and composition of council and so on. Ever this then ACCA officials have adopted a deliberate policy of targetting Sikka for racist harrasment. Did you note the attack by ACCA Vice-President Jim Waits.  This is further illustrated by ACCA press release dated 6th May 1999 (see below) - see the last two lines.

At the 1999 council elections, 20 candidates contested 10 seats. So 10 were unsuccessful. Did ACCA name all ten unsuccessful candidates or mention how their vote went? No. It deliberately singled out Prem Sikka, a non-white person. One assumes that ACCA's officeholders approved of the practice. Prem Sikka is the UK's only non-white Professor of Acocunting.

AABA will publish further examples of racism at ACCA. Racism in the profession must be rooted out. We will also inform various authorities of ACCA's racist practices and urge full investigation.
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ACCA PRESS RELEASE
 

Five new members elected to ACCA Council

6-May-1999

Five new members of the Council of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) were declared elected today. They are joined by five existing Council members who were re-elected in the same ballot which took place during April.

Heading the list was Samuel Wong, Chairman of ACCA Hong Kong and a partner in  Ernst & Young. Other newcomers to Council are: Gerald Andrews (Finance and Resources Director at the NEC Group), David Finch (Group Finance Director at Spaldings Limited), Christopher Forster (Vice President and Compliance Officer, Chase Manhattan Bank) and Mark Gold (a Senior Partner, Silver Levene).

Those returning to Council are this year's Deputy President Moyra Kedslie; David Defty, former Group Finance Director of Sears; ACCA Past President David Leonard; Aulous Madden, who is Senior Partner of Aulous F Madden & Company, in Kingston, Jamaica;  and Soon Kwai Choy, Managing Director of Ceanet Advanced Technologies in Kuala Lumpur

Among those unsuccessful this year was long standing candidate Professor Prem Sikka whose vote was significantly reduced on previous elections.