Contractors of Saglemi housing deal diverted $40 million – Kwaku Baako reveals
Veteran journalist and the Editor in Chief of the New Crusading Guide, Kwaku Baako Junior has been making some revelations about the botched Saglemi housing deal which was executed during former President John Mahama’s tenure.
The contractor for the project was Construtora OAS Ghana Ltd, a Brazillian company.
According to Mr. Baako alleges that the contractor of the project diverted $40 million before the project even got started.
Making the revelation on Asaase Radio 99.5MHz, Mr. Baako said; “The Ghana government paid US$80 million [as a first tranche to the contractor], as required by the agreement. And on 13 April 2013, US$40 million of this US$80 million – that is apparently before the works had started – a senior member of that company [the contractor, Construtora OAS Ghana Ltd] had organised what he claims to be a loan from the company to the company’s partner outside the country.”
“So, US$40 million from the US$80 million was not used to do anything in this country, straight away moved out. How was the work going to be effectively done? Just ask yourself. And you see, this is what some of these companies do to countries like Ghana,” he further disclosed.
Baako explained that the firm subsequently came under intense scrutiny by the Brazilian government over corruption-related activities resulting in the cash diversion measure to settle an insolvency problem.
“If 50% of that US$80 million was flighted out of the country, obviously it will affect the work, so that one, US$40 million… went somewhere. It was chopped outside Ghana.”
Meanwhile the Minister who was in charge of the project Hon. Collins Dauda who is currently the legislature representing the people of Asutifi South constituency, and four others have been dragged to the court by the Attorney General for causing financial loss to the State.
Hon. Dauda has been accused of deliberately misapplying $200,000 of the project money and also made changes to the original contract terms without seeking any parliamentary approval.
According the charge statement; “Alhaji Collins Dauda, between February 2016 and December 2016 in Accra in the Greater Accra Region you intentionally misapplied the sum of US$200,000 belonging to the government of Ghana by causing the said amount, which had been approved by the Parliament of Ghana for the construction of 5,000 housing units, to be applied towards the payment of 1,412 housing units under the Saglemi Affordable Housing Project.”
The four others who been charged in addition to Hon. Collins Dauda include Kwaku Agyemang Mensah, Alhaji Ziblim Yakubu, Andrew Clocans and Nouvi Tetteh Angelo.
—AccraMail.com
