National Chair of the Association of Road Contractors, John Afful, has said the allegation by Former Rector of the Ghana Institue of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), Professor Stephen Adei that road contractors pay $1 million upfront bribe for contracts, is strange.
He wondered which contractor would pay one million dollars for a contract and not get paid four or five years after completing the work.
Prof Adei had alleged in an interview with TV3 that he had information to the effect that persons seeking road contracts were told: “Road contracts will be given to you, provided you pay 1 million upfront….”
He said “One of the greatest disappointments of Nana Akufo-Addo’s regime is that honestly, he raised the hope of Ghanaians. Ghanaians expected they have gotten a leader with a vision, with the charisma, with the determination and it seems if he doesn’t redeem himself in the next 14 months, he would go down in history as one of the most disappointing leaders,” he said.
He added “This road contract would be given to you, provided you put one million upfront, not after you have gotten the money. This is what Akufo-Addo must be thinking about and if he knows about it, he must be ashamed.
“That now his people demand from you a certain amount before you would be considered for a job. Why? Because when they get it, whether the government pays you or not they have gotten their money. It is as if people are in a hurry to loot the country before the end of Akufo-Addo’s term.”
Acting on this allegation, the Minister of Roads and Highways, Kwasi Amoako-Attah, on Monday 23rd October 2023, requested the Executive Director of the EOCO to fully probe the allegations.
According to the Roads Ministry, these allegations are surprising at the least because the processes leading to the award of road contracts are open, transparent, competitive and in accordance with the law.
“Given that the alleged conduct borders on the commission of crime against the Republic, the Minister of Roads and Highways, Hon. Kwasi Amoako-Attah, has today, 23rd October 2023, requested the Executive Director of the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) to fully investigate the allegations.
“The Ministry wishes to assure the public that it shall cooperate fully and support EOCO in the conduct of its investigation,” a statement issued by the Ministry on Monday, October 23 said.
Speaking on the Sunrise show on 3FM on Thursday, October 25, Mr Afful said “we were surprised at the statement …it is very strange to go and doll out money to collect a project which you know you are not going to be paid immediately.
“I don’t know how many people want to do that in this situation that we are in where people are owed three or four or five years and they haven’t been paid. Surprisingly there is a Minister for Roads and Highways, Kwasi Amoako-Attah who for the past three years has been hammering that all he needs is those who have the capacity to go and do the work, they should come and take the job and go and do.
“So the jobs are there but the point is they don’t even have the capacity to do the job, how much more go and pay as much as a million bribe. If I have a million dollars I will invest it in something else than to go and give to somebody to give me just paper and after that will not even be paid after doing the work.”