The governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) has chastised former President John Dramani Mahama for accusing the Akufo-Addo administration of corruption.
Former President Mahama, NPP believes, has no moral justification to talk about corruption, let alone accuse the governing party of same when his administration was plagued with corruption and “sweetheart deals”, that cannot be surpassed by any party in government.
Addressing a news conference in Accra yesterday, the NPP General Secretary, Mr John Boadu, challenged the former president to handover information on corruption in the current government to the mandated investigative institutions including the Office of the Special Prosecutor for prosecution.
Mr John Boadu issued the challenge in response to claims by former President Mahama that the Akufo-Addo administration has stolen Ghana’s money.
Former President Mahama is reported to have said during his ‘thank you’ tour of the regions, that he can ensure accountability when the current government is voted out of power in 2024.
But the NPP chief scribe retorted that unlike President Akufo-Addo, Mr. Mahama cannot and has not been able to make any bold statement to tout his incorruptibility because of his personal involvement in a lot of corruption scandals that plagued his administration.
“Former President Mahama asserts without proof that the NPP has stolen Ghana’s money and that, he can ensure accountability through elections. Extremely rich, coming from a party credited by the Supreme Court of Ghana, with the ability to ‘create, loot and share’ public funds with impunity.
“Is Mahama, of ‘Government Official One’ infamy and the Ford vehicle from Kanazoe Contractors, talking about corruption? Is that the same Mahama whose government signed onto a half-baked contract of $1.2 billion for the Ghana Retail Payments Systems Infrastructure,” he scoffed.
Mr John Boadu reiterated that, “Sibton Switch Systems Ltd has just lost an arbitration demand for $478 million from Ghana for revoking that agreement. The Akufo-Addo administration did a far more enhanced project for only $4.5 million.”
Elaborating on the case, the NPP General Secretary noted that Mr. Mahama’s good friend, Roland Agambire was at the centre of being granted the unbudgeted contract without even Public Procurement Authority (PPA) approval and paid upfront before services.
According to him, Mr Agambire uses used some of the money for homes in Dubai and for paying media houses for NDC adverts for 2012 general election.
The biggest money heist, he maintained, was the Sibton Switch Systems contract in which Ghana was going to lose billions of cedis.
The fallout from the exposé, Mr John Boadu pointed out, was that the contract was awarded at a cost of GH¢4.6 billion under John Mahama.
According to him, billions of dollars were quoted under the previous administration but the NPP government built the system for less than US$4 million.
“Is it not more worrying that all dubious deals under Mahama were carried by the RLG man? Mahama advised Agambire to go into hiding after the elections. The NPP government saved the country billions of dollars which have helped the government channel resources into projects like Free SHS, planting for food and job, 1D1F, etc,” he said.
Mr John Boadu stated that former President Mahama proved to be so corrupt that during his time as Vice President, the late President Mills had cause to set up a committee to investigate the role he played in the processes leading to the acquisition of five aircrafts including Embraer 190 Aircraft and hanger for the Ghana Armed Forces.
