Corruption:Baba Kamara Breaks Silence On M&J Scandal

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High Commissioner to the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Alhaji Baba Kamara, has expressed dismay at the claim by the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) that it has sent a written invitation to him to respond to the bribery allegations against him in the Mabey & Johnson scandal.

“I have not had such an invitation. Never!” he told DAILY GUIDE from Abuja, Nigeria yesterday.

Speaking exclusively to DAILY GUIDE for the first time since news about the Mabey & Johnson scandal made the headlines, Ghana’s new envoy to Nigeria asked why he would deny cooperating with such a constitutionally established body, more so “when I have nothing to hide in the subject”.

Kamara was alleged to be the conduit by which some of the bribe money got to the recipients. Exuding confidence as he took issue with what he considered a mis-representation of the true state of affairs, the High Commissioner explained that had he received such a request to appear to proffer what he knows about the case, he would not have hesitated to do so.

Earlier in the week, Justice Emile Short had told the media that of the six persons chronicled in the SFO (UK) documents, only two- Dr. George Adjah-Sipa Yankey and Edward Lord Attivor, former Chairman of State Transport Company- had responded to written invitations to come and defend themselves by the time the deadline for the obligation ended on October 31, 2009.

Mr Short threatened to use legal means to compel the persons to make an appearance during a radio interview a few days ago.

However, Alhaji Baba Kamara’s position appears to match that of Alhaji Abubakar Saddique Boniface about the non-delivery of written invitations to the alleged beneficiaries of the largesse.

Alhaji Boniface had also expressed surprise earlier that CHRAJ claimed it could not find him to deliver an invitation for him to appear before it.

He told DAILY GUIDE that at the time CHRAJ claimed not to know where to find him, he was in his constituency, Salaga, adding that it was not difficult to locate. He was expected to submit his written response to the commission yesterday.

Following the breaking of the story, two ministers, Dr. Sipa Yankey of the Health Ministry and Alhaji Amadu Seidu, Minister of State at the Presidency, bowed out of government. Alhaji Baba Kamara, whose appointment as High Commissioner to Nigeria suffered a brief delay due to the scandal, was finally presented with his letters of credence when, according to a Castle source, President Mills was compelled to let go the hold on the envoy’s movement to his new duty post.

DAILY GUIDE sources, meanwhile, relayed that the relationship between Baba Kamara and the immediate past Minister of Health, Dr. Sipa Yankey, went frosty following the radio disclosure Sipa-Yankey made which suggested that the Ghanaian envoy met him over the Mabey & Johnson bribe and asked him to furnish him with his bank account, into which monies were allegedly paid.

The radio allegation was said to have sent disturbing signals to the Presidency because of the negative connotations it had.

Alhaji Baba Kamara told DAILY GUIDE he was sure that when Dr. Sipa-Yankey presents his statement to CHRAJ, it would vary from the radio station allegations he earlier made and his name (Baba Kamara) would not be part of the document because “there would be no basis for such”.

The High Commissioner’s brief intercourse with DAILY GUIDE from the city of Abuja opened a new chapter on the Mabey & Johnson saga, especially if Dr. Sipa-Yankey really avoided Baba Kamara’s name in his interaction with CHRAJ.

Alhaji Baba Kamara was mentioned alongside Dr. George Sipa-Yankey, Edward Lord Attivor, of the former State Transport Corporation, Amadu Seidu, former Minister of State at the Presidency, Dr Ato Quarshie, a former Minister of Roads and Highways and Alhaji Boniface in the case.

They were said to have benefited from the £750,000 largesse from Mabey & Johnson, a British bridge construction firm that sought to win projects in the country.

Source: DAILY GUIDE

"President Mills Is Unfit For President"! -PC

"President Mills Is Unfit For President"! -PC Appiah Ofori

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The Member of Parliament for Asikuma Odoben Brakwa, Hon. P.C. Appiah, has turned his guns on President John Evans Atta Mills! He has accused the latter of covering up corruption that is very close to his nose, and refusing to conduct investigations into allegations that some leading members of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) government have engaged in acts of corruption!

According to Appiah Ofori, the alleged corrupt officials work very close to the President, but a petition he sent to the President to this effect has been totally ignored by the President, who likes to describe himself as Mr. Clean.

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament (MP), who has achieved a level of notoriety for himself for his off the-cuff accusations of corruption against fellow politicians, recently accused his own colleague MPs of taking $5000.00 bribes, allegations he has refused to prove. It is likely that his high-flying accusations against leading members of the NDC would also suffer the same fate! Speaking to an Accra based radio station yesterday afternoon; Mr. Appiah-Ofori also accused the president of duplicity for not revoking the sale of 70% shares of Ghana Telecom to Vodafone International Holdings BV.

According to the Appiah-Ofori, the President had shown extreme bad faith to the people of Ghana by failing to revoke SPA, because, he, Appiah Ofori, had amply demonstrated to the president why the sale of the seventy percent shares was unconstitutional.

According to the MP, who accused his colleagues of taking $5000.00 bribes to approve the sale, there were grave procedural errors over the parliamentary approval, and he had given the President ample evidence to this effect.

The NPP MP had been called to give comments on the statement issued by government this week that it was going to ‘re-engage; the management at Vodafone with a view to varying the conditions of sale of Ghana’s 70% stake in GT. Mr. Appiah Ofori said he had presented President Atta Mills with ample evidence to demonstrate that the sale and purchase agreement between Ghana and Vodafone was illegal and ought to be abrogated. “If he cannot do this then he is unfit to be President. He swore that he would abrogate this contract, but that is not what he is doing,” Mr. Appiah Ofori said.

Source: The Daily Searchlight

M&J scandal: Sipa Yankey, Attivor respond to CHRAJ's request

CHRAJ Commissioner Emile Short Two of the five officials named in the Mabey & Johnson scandal have responded to a CHRAJ request to them to respond to the allegations. A deadline to do so passed on October 31. The commission had sent letters to five officials, including, former Health Minister, Dr. George Sipa-Adja Yankey, former Roads & Highways Minister, Edward Lord Attivor, and to recently-designated High Commissioner to Nigeria, Baba Kamara. However in an interview with Joy News on Monday, Mr Short said only Dr Yankey and Mr Attivor had, as of Friday October 30, 2009, responded. This means three officials have yet to send in their responses, Mr Short indicated. Mr Short rules out subpoenaing the officials to appear before the commission but says the officials could still ask for an extension of the deadline. He however served notice that CHRAJ would take the necessary measures to force the officials to respond if they decide not to honour the commission’s request. “They could ask for an extension of time or we could choose to extend the time by sending them a reminder but if they fail or refuse to respond there are provisions whereby we could take the [matter] to court for disobedience to a lawful request made by the commission,” he said. Mr Short said the letters must be deemed as part of the commission’s work in helping establish the truth in the developments. “As part of our investigative procedure, we normally write a letter to persons we are investigating, outlining the allegations against them, giving them an opportunity to respond,” he added. The respondents had until Saturday October 31, 2009 to respond to the bribery allegations against them. The probe follows President Mills’ order to CHRAJ to look into the matter and it follows a preliminary investigation by the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice. Story by Fiifi Koomson/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana

Ghana@50 Probe Ends

Justice Isaac Duose-Chairman of the commission AFTER TAKING evidence from 238 witnesses comprising suppliers, contractors and service providers, the public hearings of the Commission of Inquiry probing the activities of Ghana @ 50 Secretariat finally drew to a close yesterday. The public hearings commenced on July 23 this year, after the Commission had done preliminary work which included visits to some Ghana @ 50 project sites and organizing volumes of memoranda and petitions it had received at the time. The Chairman of the Commission, Justice Duose, who announced this soon after three officials from the Office of the President testified before it, said the Commission would be writing its report as required by law. He said recommendations from the Commission would indicate the way forward for the 60th anniversary or any other public event so as to avoid malfeasances that were exposed during hearings. Besides, he said, reports will help move the country forward. “As to what kind of advice to give the President, the Commission will be rising now and start writing its reports. In a few weeks you will hear about the report,” he stressed. He gave the assurance that the Commission would consider in its report views of those who are against the conduct of the commission. Justice Duose pleaded for forgiveness from any individual or group that the Commission might have caused any displeasure during the process, adding, “We are humans and capable of making mistakes, forgive us if we have said anything that may cause your displeasure”. While expressing appreciation to all and sundry for their support, Justice Duose promised: “We will do our best to ensure the report covers everything. We will be as fair as possible”. Earlier, three officials told the Commission that to date the Office of the President has not yet determined the salary of the Chief Executive of the defunct Ghana @ 50 Secretariat, Dr. Charles Wereko-Brobby. According to them, the Office of the President was not aware of the CEO’s letter of appointment that would inform government as to how much he should receive as salary. The three officers were Samuel Azu Aziako, Director of Administration, responsible for budget at the Office of President; Annor Kissi, Chief Internal Auditor and Naa Yussif Mumuni, Chief Treasury Officer. It would be recalled that the CEO, during his appearance, told the Commission his appointment letter, by which he was to be paid a monthly salary of $5000, is at the Office of the President. He also said the government owed him salary arrears of $146,000. However, Mr. Aziako, who confirmed that the Office of the President raised an advance payment of $75,000 to the CEO for medical check-ups, said there was no basis for the CEO to demand salary arrears from the government, since the Office was not aware of his appointment letter. Mr. Aziako pointed out that the CEO was not being paid alongside staff of the Secretariat. When asked why the Office did not do so, he remarked, “It is not our making, whenever he takes the claim to them for payment his name was not added to the list”. He told the Commission that as at Wednesday, the Office of the President had released an amount of GH¢7,448,028.56 to the Secretariat while the Office has an amount of GH¢7,522,115.97 which has not been pre-audited. The Office of the President, he added, also spent an amount of GH¢39295011.43 between November 2006 to December 2008 during the celebrations, pointing out that no payment was made without the knowledge of the CEO. Confirming to the Commission that they have no idea whether or not monies were released to Ghana’s Mission abroad for the celebrations, Mr. Aziako said as at December 2008, there was an outstanding debt of GH¢11million and a cash balance of GH¢622626.28. On whether or not the Secretariat indeed made any surplus as alleged by the CEO, he said he would not be able to tell the Commission. During cross-examination, the Chief Internal Auditor at the Office of the President, Annor Kissi told the Commission that the Secretariat did not supply accounts for annual auditing; adding that his outfit has no record of the Escrow account. “The Escrow account was controlled by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning”. According to him, the Office of the President’s records or figures of transactions might not exactly reflect that of the Secretariat because in his view, payments were made directly from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning and therefore the Office might not have direct documents covering all transactions. “Records in our custody are that of the treasury and the internal audit unit. You will not get documents of internal payment of the Secretariat from the Office of the President”, he elucidated. When the Commission Chairman enquired from the three officials what roles they played during the celebrations, Mr. Aziako explained that none of their officers was an employee of the Secretariat, whether directly or indirectly, and that their role was to convey executive decisions to the Secretariat and counter sign cheques. They also prepared pay vouchers and subject matter for action, he added. By Sheilla Sackey/Daily Guide

Wereko-Brobby Paid $75,000 As Salary Advance

Dr Charles Wereko-Brobby

The Director of Administration responsible for Budgeting of the Government Machinery, Mr Azu Sam-Aziakor, has told the Presidential Commission probing the activities of the Ghana@50 Secretariat that $75,000 had been paid to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the defunct secretariat, Dr Charles Wereko-Brobby, as salary advance.

Making his submission at the final public hearing of the commission in Accra, Mr Sam-Aziakor said the payment had been approved by the former Chief of Staff and Minister of Presidential Affairs, Mr Kwadwo Mpiani.

The Chairman of the commission, Mr Justice Isaac Duose, asked the basis for which that amount had bee paid to Dr Wereko-Brobby, since it had been stated that his salary had not been determined when he was engaged.

Mr Sam-Aziakor responded that although Dr Wereko-Brobby’s salary had not been determined up to date, the CEO had sent a memorandum to him some time in 2008 asking if a process could be initiated to pay him his salary.

He said Dr Wereko-Brobby further stated that he had to seek medical attention abroad and would need some money from his salary to undergo treatment.

According to the director, the request was approved by Mr Mpiani and the CEO was subsequently paid $75,000.
Mr Sam-Aziakor told the commission that at the moment money available at the treasury which could be used to settle debts owed contractors was GH¢7,448,028.56.

He said GH¢1,163,499.50 was owed to contractors, while payment vouchers which had not been pre-audited at the treasury amounted to GH¢7,522,115.97

He said as of December 31, 2008 there were no funds to settle the outstanding debts of the contractors and that the funds had been released in the early part of 2009, by which time the government had placed an embargo on such payments.

Mr Sam-Aziakor said no funds had been released to any Ghana mission abroad for the celebration of the Golden Jubilee.

A member of the commission, Mr Osei Tutu Prempeh, asked Mr Sam-Aziakor whether or not he had raised any queries in respect of claims brought before him by the secretariat.

In his response, Mr Sam-Aziakor said on a few occasions he had raised queries in respect of some vouchers, explaining that that occurred when the vouchers did not include some requirements, such as award of contract letters, offer and acceptance letters and evidence of the execution of contracts.

He said his office instituted rigid control measures before it effected payments because it knew the implication of payments as far as celebrations of that nature were concerned.

Mr Prempeh again asked Mr Sam-Aziakor whether the secretariat had handed over fully to his office. Mr Sam-Aziakor said there was nothing to indicate that the secretariat had handed over finally.

Asked about the measures he had taken to ensure that the secretariat handed over fully to his office, Mr Sam-Aziakor said he had not taken any measures to that effect.

Mr Prempeh said it was unfortunate for him not to have ensured that the secretariat properly handed over to his office.
Asked what role he had played in the preparation of the budget of the Ghana@50 Secretariat, Mr Sam-Aziakor said he had played no role.

Mr Justice Duose asked him about the one who had controlled the escrow account of the secretariat, to which he responded that it was the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning which had done that.

In his remarks to round off the work of the commission, Mr Justice Duose said 238 witnesses had appeared before it to give evidence and make submission of statements on the activities of the secretariat.

He said any member of the public who wished to submit a statement in response to the abuse that had been exposed during the sittings was free to do so.

He thanked all Ghanaians who had supported or disagreed with the establishment of the commission and its work.

Mr Justice Duose also thanked the media for their reportage, whether positive or negative, and expressed the hope that the commission’s report, which would be submitted to the President in a few weeks, would cover everything that had transpired at the sitting and help push the country forward.

Rawlings Must Apologise To Ghanaians!!!

Related Stories The Mabey and Johnson scandal came as a shock to many Ghanaians especially at this time of the NDC party being in government. The NDC, is the offspring of the then “PNDC”, which had "hawks" who paraded themselves as monarchs and apostles of anti corruption under the ambit of Probity and Accountability and so forth. But today these crusaders have brought shame to us not only that, but an embarrassment to the good people of this noble country. We the youth want to state categorically that the government, for that matter the president who campaigned on the platform of whipping the crack should not shield any one found culpable and allow those involved face the full rigorous of the law. We ask of the Muntaka fiasco, what happened after been forced to resign? Now is the turn of the beloved son (Hon. Dr Sipa Yankey Min. Of Health) and uncle (Alhaji Seidu Amadu Min of State,) also joining the queue of resigning syndrome, we wonder if it is not another antics or a “smart one’’ to bury the matter again? Oh! God save Ghana. The youth of this country are learning from the statesmen of this land, and we are wondering if this is the Nationalism, Patriotism, and Selflessness they are teaching us to grow up with, certainly not! We were in this country when some personalities made so much brouhaha about others integrity calling them all sort of names such as “”Atta Ayi, thieves and so on. This Mabey and Johnson scandal is one of the most contagious official corruption fiasco in the annals of Ghana’s political history, and interestingly, under the PNDC/NDC government. A party that was formed under the cover of Probity and Accountability. They used these principles to prosecute officials and hardworking entrepreneurs at the time, for illegally acquiring wealth and thereby confiscating, canning, killing and some going on exile, etc under the watch of ex-President Rawlings. This Mabey and Johnson scandal is alleged to have started in the 80’s. We therefore ask Mr. Rawlings and his executors; what justification does the apostles of anti corruption government have to have committed such outrageous, inhuman, and sacrilegious act. Or is it that, the man who orchestrated the act did enjoy the booties of Mabey and Johnson, which is why he has kept silent all this while? If the above is anything to go by, then I think that Mr. Rawlings should as matter of necessity apologize to all the families of the victims who suffered the brutalities caused under his watch. Because, if this revelation and the most unfortunate event is something to go by, then, the PNDC/NDC have deceived Ghanaians. Not only that, they have also robbed the country of progress and development. Because the people who at the time, suffered these casualties, were the light of this country in terms of their entrepreneurial expertise. They might have grown their companies and businesses to reduce the abject poverty in this country by employing a number of graduates in the system that are left in a jungle of struggle. This perception by some group of persons that it is wrong to acquire wealth must from hence forth be something of the past. It is sheer hatred and envy which retarded growth and the cause effect is lies, back-biting, and vindictiveness of innocent citizens. After all, “the pious have turned out to be corrupt" quite contrary to what they made Ghanaians believe all this while. Long live Mother Ghana! Long live the Good People of Ghana!! Long live our Great Grand Fathers!!! ANNAN ERIC OHENE-AGYEKUM (ALL NATIONS UNIVERSITY COLLEGE KOFORIDUA) Source: Vasco, Eric Annan

Revealed: Names Of M&J Bosses Who Okayed Bribes

FOR THE FIRST time, a Ghanaian newspaper can reveal that the 48-year-old son of Mr. Bevic Mabey, the only living founder of the British bridge building company, Mabey and Johnson, was part of the directors the company says put in a bribery scheme to pay public officials in Ghana, Jamaica and a host of other countries.

David Mabey, the only son of Bevic, is identified in the British papers as the Company Secretary and part of the duo –the other is his father – who “have at all material times been in exclusive control of the affairs of M&J. Whilst directors within the Mabey group could be appointed or removed at the behest of the shareholders, those same shareholders were David Mabey and his family” the SFO noted.

David’s family’s company, Mabey Holdings, which is the parent company of M&J, was estimated by the Construction magazine, a UK publication in 2007, as the 312th richest company in the UK.

The family at the time has assets of £205 million and, with dividends and other wealth, was worth £260 million. Today it is estimated to be worth £400 million

Though David’s role in the bribery affair was hidden, this paper’s sources in London have confirmed that he is the one identified as Director B in the SFO probe,

The other directors whose identity were withheld are Messrs Charles Forsyth, Richard Glover, Allen Daliday and one man who rose through the ranks from an executive position of manning affairs in Ghana (where M&J had its African head office) and the Philippines to become a Director.

He is nobody but Miles Potter, the British citizen admitted by M&J and admitted by the UK crown court to have managed the bribery scheme put in place in Ghana. Mr. Potter lived in Ghana for almost four years (see other story).

Together, these directors whose identities were withheld by the Southwark Crown Court were alleged to have put in place a bribery scheme that has seen the resignation of at least one serving minister of state, Joseph Hilbert, in Jamaica and two in Ghana.

The plea bargain agreement by M&J, however, allowed the court to withhold their identities as some of the former Director of M&J men are reported to be insisting that they did not commit any crime under UK law at the time of the said acts.

Source: GYE NYAME CONCORD

Mabey and Johnson: Mr.Miles Potter (Director D): The Man Who Paid Sipa Yankey & Co

EARLY THIS PAST Monday morning, Dr George Sipa-Yankey, who had resigned his post as Ghana’s Health Minister 48 hours earlier, was seen arriving in London.

Barely 24-hours earlier, he had had a row with the nominated Ghana High Commissioner to Nigeria, Alhaji Baba Kamara, over allegations reportedly made by him on radio that the later was the one who collected his passport to facilitate payment to him from M&J.

Sources say Kamara had not taken kindly to the allegations and minced no words in telling the troubled Yankey to go and check his records well before speaking loosely.

Shaken and under criticism from NDC party supporters, some of whom had earlier supported him but were now turning on him, Sipa Yankey decided to do the wisest thing. He flew the next available flight to London to call on his bank to call all records of his transactions within the period under review to be able to speak properly to the issue and to possibly meet the other man who could help refresh his memory on the scandal threatening to end his political career.

Unfortunately, Gye Nyame Concord can authoritatively reveal that the man who could have helped refresh his memory was not in London.

Mr Miles Potter, the Mabey and Johnson man who dealt with and largely paid a number of top Ghanaian officials accused of receiving bribes from the British bridge building company, and who is identified as “Director D” was no longer in London. He now lives on the Asian continent, sources in London told this paper.

The then fresh university graduate spent almost four years in Ghana in the 90s and managed to worm his way into the heart and minds of top public officials through the doling of ‘freebies’ in cash.

Those freebies transferred to various accounts in London and elsewhere are what the soft-spoken 56-year-old head of the British SFO, Richard Alderman (picture on the front page), now says were part of a deliberate bribery scheme put in place by M&J to corruptly procure contracts.

M&J, according to the Queens Counsel for the SFO, John Hardy, paid “a wide-ranging series of bribes” totalling £470,000 to politicians and officials in Ghana, with Dr George Sipa-Yankey, Messrs Amadu Seidu, Ato Quarshie, Boniface Abubakar Saddique and Edward Lord-Attivor allegedly travelling to Britain to collect various sums of money from bank accounts in London.

In the eyes of the SFO, M&J paid public servants modest sums which were relatively small in proportion to the commercial gain the company got.

What the SFO, however, stopped short of doing was to disclose the identity of the man it said oversaw the Ghana situation and whom it only identified as “Director D” in court.

Truth is, the late Danny Ofori Atta had a running battle with the young Englishman with an expertise in finance, who had been brought into the country to supervise the work of M&J and who was to rise as an executive officer to become a Director of the company after a successful stint much later in life in the Philippines.

According to the evidence led by QC John Hardy in court, on April 3, 1996, the late Ofori-Atta stormed the Twyford offices of M&J in London with a relative to meet with the Office Manager of M&J following his frustration with Potter in Accra.

The records show that the complaint from the late Danny Ofori Atta, a former kingpin of the EGLE party, was that he did not have total control of the 15 per cent commission due him and some of which should be shared to public officials.

Miles Potter, who was then in Accra, was not delivering on the bribes to him, the SFO suggests.

In the words of the SFO, Danny Ofori Atta had problems with Potter’s presence in Accra and did not believe Mr Potter was distributing “5% to the “relevant personnel” or “local personalities”.

Records sourced from M&J by the SFO noted that Danny, who is identified in the documents as Mr Ofori, complained that he had been sidelined by Potter, who was now dealing directly with other Ghanaians and that when he (Danny) was involved in the payment scheme of the total amount of the “15% commission the present difficulties would not have existed”.

This was because he had dealt with the situation ably in the past.

Again it was about Miles Potter on whom Danny wrote a letter dated March 14, 1996 and sent via fax on a “Danielli Mabey Ltd” letterhead marked for the attention of his wife, Mrs Margaret Ofori, in Accra to be passed on to M&J head office.

In the fax, Danny complained that “the situation in Ghana has been deteriorating gradually ever since Director D (Potter) came into Ghana.”

Potter according to the SFO had equally sent a “confidential memo” dated 25 March 1996 directly to Director B (David Mabey)) rebutting Mr. Ofori’s assertions, and detailing how it was that he had had a meeting recently with the only person who “can guarantee M&J’s position in this market”: Kwame Peprah.

All these disputes occurred because the Mabey family firm, whose worldwide empire is based on exports of steel bridges, had decided at the time in the word of the British SFO to “sideline” Danny and “to impose more direct control over the payments made to “local personalities” by” Potter “supervising and control from 1994”.

Significantly, after his stint in Accra, Potter was assigned a duty post in the Philippines where he successfully managed to change the fortunes of the British firm by bringing in more than a billion British Pound bridge building contracts.

The story on his Philippine exploits, which nearly marred the presidency of that country’s president, was captured in the following terms by the UK-based Guardian newspaper.

“A little-known family who became one of the richest in Britain have been accused of making excessive profits in an aid project, by building what their critics call “bridges to nowhere”.

A Guardian investigation has discovered that steel bridges costing more than £400m have been sold to the Philippines by the Mabey family, all secured with UK government-backed loans and grants. But many of the crossings, which were supposed to open up the flood-prone jungle terrain, have no roads to go with them.

The British construction company, Mabey & Johnson, owned by the Mabey family, has been handed virtually all the supply contracts for the bridges, despite being more expensive than its competitors. Accusations of corruption and overcharging are now being made in the Philippines. Mabey denies any impropriety, saying the allegations are made by rivals or are politically motivated.”

Source: GYE NYAME CONCORD

PSC Tema Shipyard: Former IGP is furious

Mr. Patrick Kwarteng Acheampong The former Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr. Patrick Kwarteng Acheampong, has reacted with fury over bribery allegations leveled against him by the Chief Financial Officer of the PSC Tema Shipyard Company, Mr. Mohammed Ismail Bin Lebai Suleiman. According to Mr. Acheampong, he does not know the operations of West Africa's biggest dry dock company and neither does he know any individual working at the place, to mention that he was bribed by the company. In a witness statement submittal by Mr. Suleiman to an internal audit on the accounts of the company, he alleged that 'protocol payments' were paid to some 60 policemen who were maintaining security at the shipyard, when unionised workers of the company were interdicted for carrying out an industrial action against what they said were poor conditions of work, in December last year. Further, he stated that the police officers, including officers from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), were paid GH¢9,000 in lieu of chicken and rice for the Christmas celebrations last year. He stressed that some GH¢ were used as "payments to the Regional Commander and his deputy," adding that the then IGP, during the period of the interdiction, first received GH¢10,000 to ensure security at the yard, and that the IGP subsequently ordered the then Tema Regional Police Commander, Mr. Adeloya, to beef up security at the shipyard. The infuriated ex-IGP, who said, "these people can't be serious; what do they deal in? I have never had any contact with that company, as a corporate body, or with any individual in that company; I'm not even aware that they had an industrial unrest, and as many as 60 policemen were released to them." He said in December last year, the attention of the police administration was focused on how to ensure a peaceful election, noting that security was released to some flashpoints in and outside Accra, as a result, under no circumstances would the police administration release the limited number of police at the headquarters to beef up security at the shipyard. He remarked that during the elections, the number of police officers was not adequate, as a result they depended heavily on the military, lamenting that he was concerned with the lack of security in some parts of the country, including Upper East and Upper West. Mr. Acheampong clarified that there could be internal arrangements by the Tema police to provide security, if any, as is done in all the regions, emphasising that police from the headquarters come in when the situation deteriorates. "I don't remember that we, from Accra, ever sent anybody to help Tema to solve those problems; it is never true that I ordered any Mr. Adeloya, and the period they are referring to, it was Mr. Kudalor who was the Tema Regional Commander; I am not even aware that 60 police officers were released to them, but why would 60 officers be released to only this company?" he queried. He welcomed the decision of the Minister of Transport to set up a committee to investigate the allegations that have been leveled by Mr. Suleiman, and the operations of the company. "I am prepared to cooperate with the committee should they invite me, because I don't know anything about the allegations, and this would enable me to clear my name," he reiterated. Mr. Patrick TimbilIa, the then Director-General of Police Operations, denied ever releasing police officers to Tema, adding, "I don't even know any company called PSC Shipyard, and I have never done any operations with them." He said if the headquarters had to release police officers, there should be a request from the Tema Regional Commander, through the IGP. The then Regional Commander, Mr. Kudalor, told the paper that he was also not aware of any payment made to him, or the region, as was being alleged. However, the Deputy Regional Commander, ACP Ninson, confirmed releasing some police officers to the Tema Shipyard, but denied receiving monies from the company. "There were some labour issues there, so we sent some- officers from the Buffalo Unit here in Tema, but no money was given to us, it was our official duty," he reiterated The Minister of Transport, Mr. Mike Hammah, on Tuesday inaugurated a seven-member committee, chaired by Mr. Chris Ackummey, to investigate the operations of the company, and submit its report within eight weeks. Source: Chronicle/Ghana

M&J saga: CHRAJ writes to 'accused'

Mr Short: the material obtained from the Attorney General was insufficient. The Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) says it has delivered letters to some of the public officials implicated in the Mabey and Johnson bribery scandal, as a first step towards a full scale investigation into the matter. This, it said, was in accordance with regulations in the investigation of complaints contained in the Complaint Procedure Regulations, Constitutional Instrument No 7. CHRAJ, however, said it had encountered some difficulties in its attempt to serve the letters on Alhaji Abubakar Siddique Boniface and Lord Attivor, two of the officials mentioned in the case, as they could not be found. Mr Emile Short, the commissioner, said preliminary investigation was underway to gather evidence to determine whether there was some substance in the allegations made. "If satisfied there is some substance to the allegations, we shall conduct a full investigation which would involve setting up a panel to investigate the allegations," he told the Daily Graphic. "At the moment, we do not have all the information we require to make that determination," he added. Mr Short said the material obtained from the Attorney General was insufficient for CHRAJ to decide whether the case merited a full scale investigation or not. By the Complaint Procedure Regulations of CHRAJ, a complaint to the Commission is to be made in writing or orally to the national office of the Commission or to a representative of the Commission at the regional or district branch of the Commission. In its preliminary investigations, CHRAJ must contact the people against whom the allegations have been made with a request for their response and they in turn shall respond within 10 days from the day of the receipt of CHRAJ's request. Although the regulations stipulated how a complaint is to be made to CHRAJ, the President's request is not being considered as a complaint nor is the President himself considered as a complaint, Mr Short Said. Rather, the President's invitation was being considered as a request to an independent body like CHRAJ to conduct the investigation to avoid any allegation or perception that an investigation by the Attorney General would result in a cover-up or whitewash of the whole affair. Source: Daily Graphic