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Wednesday, September 20, 2017

GII survey: Police, judiciary tops most corrupt institutions in Ghana again


Source: Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Naa Sakwaba Akwa | faustine.akwa@myjoyonline.com

A survey conducted by the Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII) has named the Ghana Police Service and the judiciary as among the most corrupt institution in Ghana.
Both Services were given the same ranking in a similar survey conducted by the GII in 2011.
The survey, which sought to access the understanding of citizens on corruption, their perception and actual experiences also named the Driver Vehicle and Lisencing Authority (DVLA) and political parties among the most corrupt entities in the country.
It, however, stated that the topmost institutions, where citizens have had actual experiences of bribery in order of descent, are the Customs division of Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Drivers Vehicle and Licensing (DVLA), Passport Office and the Police Service.
According to the survey, majority of Ghanaians identified only bribery, embezzlement and fraud as forms of corruption.  But are split on whether nepotism is an act of corruption.
On the other hand, the respondents do not consider conflict of interest, abuse of discretion and payment of facilitation fees as forms of corruption.
The survey also indicated that nearly two-thirds of respondents believed that corruption was on the rise at the time of the survey.
The study sampled the views of 17,996 Ghanaians across the ten regions of Ghana. Data was collected between the period April and May 2016.
The GII has recommended as part of measures to deal with corruption, the provision of adequate financial resources to the Commission on Human  Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and the National Commission on Civic Education (NCCE).
These institutions will, working in collaboration with Civil Society Organisations to scale up the level of public education on the types of corruption, its impact and ways for citizens to engage in denouncing the canker.
It also proposes that the Ghana Education Service and Ministry of Education should systematically incorporate anti­-corruption education as well as ethical norms and standards that influence perceptions of wrongdoing in the curriculum at all levels of education.
For the Ghana Revenue Authority, Driver Vehicle and Licensing Authority, Passport Office and Ghana Police Service, the GII recommends a significant scale up and increase visibility of all measures instituted to address corruption citizens encounter in their interaction with officials of their institutions.
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Anti-corruption campaigners slam Mahama over vehicle gift


Source: Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Austin Brako-Powers | Email: Austin.powers@myjoyonline.com

Anti-corruption campaigners have slammed President John Dramani Mahama over what they say is his blatant disregard for anti-corruption guidelines in the country. 
According to them, by receiving a vehicle worth 100, 000 dollars from a contractor, President Mahama has not only breached the provisions of the 1992 Constitution but also the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) guidelines on conflict of interest by public servants.
Government functionaries had, initially, declined to comment on findings of Joy news’ Manasseh Awuni Azure investigation into the nature of a relationship between an Ouagadougou-based contractor, Djibril Kanazoe and the Ghanaian President.
However, after revelations that the contractor offered a Ford Expedition to the president gained momentum with Ghanaians questioning the integrity of President Mahama, the government reacted.
A statement signed by the Communications Minister, Dr Omane Boamah said the vehicle has been added to the pool of vehicles at the Presidency.
Joynews investigations revealed President Mahama was given the brand new Ford Expedition in 2012 by the Burkinabe contractor, Kanazoe, who described Mahama as his friend.
Kanazoe happened to be the contractor behind the construction of the controversial $650, 000 Ghana Embassy Wall in the Burkina Faso capital, Ouagadougou, which was flagged by the Auditor-General.
It was also revealed that the contractor is the same person who won the bid to construct the recently commissioned Dodo-Pepeso section of the Eastern Corridor Road. Joynews checks revealed that he was the only African who received a portion of the expensive road project.
There are moves to award him an 82 million cedis contract through sole sourcing.
Reacting to the issue on Joynews, Dean of the Central University School of Law, Professor Ken Attafuah said the conduct of President Mahama, if proven, can be said to have clearly violated the constitution.
“This is a clear breach of the provision of our law,” he said, adding “Article 284 of the Constitution provide that a public officer which the President is shall not put himself in a position where his personal interest conflicts or it’s likely to conflict with the performance of the functions of his office.”
Commenting on the issue, Executive secretary at the Ghana Integrity Initiative, Linda Ofori Kwafo, admitted the President has clearly breached the anti-corruption law and guidelines in the country.
She explained “The CHRAJ Conflict of Interest Guidelines came into being in 2006 and the issue of gifts is very similar to that in the Public Office Conduct,” and that “It is very worrying to hear public officials defend this.”
Governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for North Dayi, George Loh has, however, described the gift as “nothing,” saying “It is not like a personal gift given to the president.”
But some New Patriotic Party (NPP) minority Members of Parliament have called on the President to resign.
They are considering initiating impeachment proceedings against him.
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AMERI power deal over-priced by $150m - Energy ministry report


Source: Ghana|myjoyonline.com|edwin.appiah@myjoyonline.com

Government has been advised to re-negotiate a $510m power deal with UAE-based AMERI energy after a report revealed it was over-priced by $150million.
The recommendation was contained in a report of a committee tasked by the Energy ministry to review the February 10 agreement signed in 2015 with Africa and Middle East Resources Investment Group’s (AMERI Energy).
Background
Government had agreed to rent 300MW of emergency from AMERI after severe public pressure to fix a debilitating energy crisis.
AMERI plants
AMERI was to build the power plants, own and operate it for 5years before finally transferring it to the government of Ghana all at a total cost of $510m.
This was done on a sole-sourced basis after a meeting between the former President of the Republic of Ghana and the Crown Prince of Dubai.
The AMERI deal secured parliamentary approval on 20th March, 2015. But the contract was met with disapproval from energy policy think-tank African Center Energy Policy (ACEP).
Despite joining in approving the contract, the Minority said it was misled. The media also jumped on a Norwegian newspaper report which claimed the deal was over-priced.
Following a change in government, the Energy minister Boakye Agyarko tasked a 17-member committee chaired by popular New Patriotic Party (NPP) lawyer, Philip Addison.
Photo: Philip Addison
Myjoyonline.com has secured a copy of the report which points out three broad problems with the contract. The report found technical, financial and legal lapses in the contract.
On the financial side, the committee found out that although AMERI secured the deal, the contractor PPR  which acutally built and financed the plant charged $360million yet AMERI forwarded a bill of $510million in the BOOT agreement.
The committee said this is not equitable and recommends that;
"Ameri Energy should be invited back to the negotiation table to address and remedy the issues enumerated in this report and for GoG to aim to claw back a substantial portion of the over US$150million commission".
The Philip Addison committee advised that  "in the event that Ameri Energy refuses to come to the negotiation table, GoG should repudiate the Agreement on the grounds of fraud".
It faulted the NDC government of failing to do due diligence to the extent that it did not have any no information on the shareholders and directors of AMERI and other third parties.
Power minister Kwabena Donkor during the NDC administration
The report also noted that the AMERI does not have an licence or permit to operate the plants in Ghana which is contrary to section 11 and 25 of the Energy Commission Act, 1997 (ACT 541).
In another area of re-negotiation recommended in the report, the committee said the penalties charged AMERI for failing to provide power at agreed levels is woefully not punitive enough to encourage AMERI  to deliver on its 330MW mandate.
While AMERI pays little for its failures, the report found out that Ghana pays $8.5million on a monthly basis irrespective of whether power is delivered or not.
Supporting a claim by NPP MPs that it was misled to approve the deal in parliament, the report said the terms of a financial agreement, a Standby Letter of Credit (SBLC), was "significantly" different from that contained in the Agreement that went to Parliament.
A standby letter of credit offers financial protection to AMERI should something go wrong. AMERI can take away $51million even if Ghana has genuine invoice dispute between with the parties, the report also found.
The Philip Addison committee also called for a review of tax exemptions to AMERI and its third parties because they are too wide. It said AMERI and other parties do not pay corporate and income tax.
"Basically, Ameri and all its affiliates and sub-contractors and third parties are not liable to pay any form of tax whatsoever in The Republic of Ghana".
Government is yet to take a decision on the report.
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AMERI deal sinks VRA in $11.5m debt per month; $218m in 18 months

Source: Myjoyonline.com|Nathan Gadugah
Date: 19-09-2017 Time: 07:09:56:pm
The controversial AMERI Power deal is costing the country a whopping $11.5 million a month, workers of the Volta River Authority (VRA) have said.
As a result, the Authority has incurred a debt of $218 million for the past 18 months the John Mahama administration signed the deal in January in 2016.
And with the deal said to be in force for the next five years, workers at VRA say the future of the Authority is bleak and are calling for urgent revolutionary measures by government to keep the Authority afloat.
Explaining how the country incurred the losses, Chairman of the VRA senior staff association Cephas Ducer, said per the off-taker agreement signed in the AMERI deal, Ghana Gas would have to supply gas to AMERI at a cost and after the power is produced there is a capacity charge and variable cost.
“The total cost of AMERI power is the cost of the gas plus the capacity charge,” he said, adding, they have a tariff of 15 cent per kilowatt hour but the same power is sold to ECG at a cost of 5 cents per kilowatts hour.
“For every power we pick from AMERI and sell to ECG we have a deficit of 10 cents per kilowatts we have to deal with. We have done the analysis and on the average we incur a loss of 11.5 million every month.
“That is how bad the agreement is and someone must pay for it,” Cephas Ducer told Joy News’ Evans Mensah.
His revelation comes at a time government is considering renegotiating the controversial AMERI deal.
In 2015, the John Mahama administration signed a $510 million Build, Own, Operate and Transfer (BOOT) Agreement with AMERI Energy to help solve power crisis the country was enduring at the time.
The deal was criticized heavily by the then opposition, as well as civil society groups including ACEP and IMANI.
There were claims the deal had been inflated by about $150 million, an allegation officials of the former administration have rejected.
Several months after operation, VRA says the deal is unsustainable.
Cephas Ducer does not understand how government will sign an agreement with private power producers who will be depending on government for gas to run their facilities.
He would rather these power producers purchase their own gas supplies.
“Until recently, about 70-80 per cent of the gas VRA procured from Nigeria was given to Sunni Asogli for their thermal power generation.
“The Authority has done this for the past ten years. As at now Asogli owes VRA over $203million for gas supplies,” he said, adding the delayed payment led to suspension of gas supply to Ghana in July 2016.
Hands off Assets
While demanding a better deal in the AMERI arrangement, the workers have also issued a strong warning to government to keep its hands off the Authority’s thermal assets.
“…If the Energy and Finance Ministries, for that matter the government, truly believes in making government efficient, profitable and help it compete favorably in the energy market,  they should as a first step of restructuring VRA ensure that VRA’s thermal and non-power generating assets are not sold out.”
The warning comes after government placed an advert in the dailies seeking private buyers for the VRA thermal assets.
Ducer insists that policy will have dire consequences for the energy sector.
He also warned the two ministries from micro-managing the VRA.

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