By William
Yaw Owusu
Thursday
September 20, 2018
Reports reaching DAILY GUIDE indicate that
the Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu, is busily working on some cases involving
fraudulent dealings in six state-owned agencies which have been referred to him.
The Office of the Special Prosecutor is said to have
taken over the cases, and is investigating officials for causing financial loss
to the state.
The companies are Ghana National Gas Company (GNGC),
Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC), Ghana Free Zones Board (GFZB),
Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company (BOST), Ghana Standards Authority
(GSA) and the Ghana Technology University College (GTUC).
Documents available to DAILY GUIDE showed that
forensic audit was conducted by reputable international auditing firms into the
affairs of the aforementioned agencies and others where massive looting of
state resources through procurements and deliberate stealing of money running
into several billion Ghana cedis were detected.
According to the auditors, there were massive
breaches of the Public Procurement Law (Act 663, 2003) and the Public
Procurement (Amendment) Law (Act 914, 2016) and mentioned some of them as “inflation
of contracts sums and non-performance of contracts. Others include
non-enforcement and breach of contracts.”
The auditors also discovered “breach of the
provision of the Financial Administration Regulation, 2004 (L.I. 1802), such as
cash disbursement without authorization, deposit of public funds into personal
accounts and failing to account for accountable travelling allowances.”
According to sources, this is just a tip of the
iceberg of the corruption that characterized the previous Mahama
administration.
Former President John Mahama has already dared the
current administration to prosecute him or his appointees if there is evidence
of wrongdoing.
He also urged NDC supporters to flood courts in
solidarity with corrupt appointees who would be put before court.
BOST
Saga
It is turning out the GH¢40.5 million allegedly
transferred from the BOST to the previous Mahama administration constitutes just
a fraction of the mess that characterized the state oil facility under the
leadership of Kinsley Kwame Awuah-Darko.
Mr Awuah-Darko, who is on self-imposed exile, is
said to have superintended over massive corruption at BOST.
The real amount allegedly misappropriated is
believed to be in excess of hundreds of millions of cedis, according to the
report from the forensic audit into some state-owned companies.
Some top officials of BOST have also been cited in
the report for misappropriation of public funds and are going to be asked to
account for them.
A former Managing Director Kingsley Kwame
Awuah-Darko, according to the forensic audit, allegedly misappropriated
GH¢109,498,565 and $33,305,527, and funds transferred to the Chief of Staff
alone was GH¢83,567,206 aside from the GH¢40.5million earlier reported.
The report said the former Board Chairman of BOST
Kakra Essamuah has to account for GH¢1,941,527.00 and $3,741,527.00.
According to the report, George Aborah, former General
Manager, Finance at BOST, allegedly misappropriated GH¢86,418,225.00 and
$8,088,986 and should ‘account’ for the amounts.
The report also cited Mr Aborah for allegedly
transferring GH¢40,500,000 to the Chief of Staff and was also cited for
procurement irregularities amounting to GH¢14, 272, 126.
He is also to account for
GH¢2,539,624.55 as “excess cash management and transfer fees charged by First
Atlantic Bank.”
The report further said
GKA Consultancy Services, owned by Mr. Aborah, misappropriated GH¢2,800,000 and
$647,000 and therefore should account for that amount.
Project Manager of BOST,
Ato Wilson, was cited for procurement irregularities amounting to GH¢14,272,
126 and should account for $9,572.34.
More anon
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