The Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has stated that credit must be given to officials of the Electricity Company of Ghana whose vigilance helped in unearthing the anomalies with guarantees provided by Power Distribution Services for the concession agreement.
Speaking at a press conference on Thursday afternoon, Mr. Oppong Nkrumah said although initial checks by the transaction advisors found nothing untoward, ECG officials with support from other state agencies persisted.
“We reiterate that this breach was discovered by the due diligence of the Ghanaian authorities through ECG and with the support of state agencies,” he said.
“Initial Due Diligence led by the transaction advisors did not detect anything wrong with it. The second level checks (this time led by the Ghana side) initially yielded a response from Al-Koot confirming the guarantee.
It was a third level check by a Ghanaian that detected anomalies within Al-Koot thereby triggering a fourth level check.
The fourth level check involved sending an initial team from the Ghana Mission in Qatar to engage with Al-Koot officials for further verification. This fourth level further proved the anomalies and suggested untoward action which is now the subject of the full-scale inquiry,” he narrated.
The Information Minister revealed that a full-scale inquiry into the detected breaches has commenced and is expected to be completed within 30 days.
According to him, the team conducting the inquiry comprises insurance investigation experts, officials of the Energy and Finance ministries and officials of the ECG and MIDA as well.
“The inquiry will determine the nature of the breaches and advise on suggested next steps. By Tuesday [August 5, 2019], the team is expected in DOHA-Qatar as part of the inquiry. All interested parties are cooperating with the inquiry at this stage,” Mr. Oppong-Nkrumah said.
However, the Minister further denied assertions made by the minority in Parliament that the provision of the payment guarantee was a condition subsequent rather than a condition precedent.
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“The government will update all stakeholders on the outcome of the inquiry and proceed in accordance with law and the terms of the agreement as it works towards a final resolution of this matter,” he added.
