Member of Parliament for Bolga Central, Isaac Adongo has urged President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to hand over the GHS217 million COCOBOD fraud case to the Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu.
According to him, it’s unnecessary for the Attorney General, Gloria Akuffo to investigate the matter when it’s the duty of the Special Prosecutor to handle such sensitive cases.
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“Why should the AG take such an issue up when we have a Special Prosecutor to handle it? It’s just a political witch-hunt to allow the AG to handle it. What is the use of Amidu when Nana Addo has appointed him to check such issues. It’s just a political witch hunting and so they should stop disgracing the NDC” he charged on Accra-based radio station, Okay FM.
CEO of Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Dr Stephen Opuni, businessman Seidu Agongo and AgriCult Ghana Company Limited, are facing charges of willfully causing financial loss of GHS217 to the state through three separate fertilizer supply contracts between 2014 and 2016.
The contracts were GHS43.1 million (2013/2014 cocoa farming season), GHS75.3 million (2014/2015 cocoa farming season) and GHS98.9 million (2015/2016 cocoa farming season), totaling GHS217 million through sole-sourcing, the state claimed, adding that procurement procedures for sole-sourcing were not followed.
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According to the charges, the consignments of Lithovit Foliar were produced locally, contrary to an agreement between COCOBOD and AgriCult Ghana Company Limited that it be sourced from Germany.
Also, the Attorney General claims the fertilisers were manufactured without registration, thereby, flouting the Plants and Fertiliser Act, 2010.
According to the state, Dr Opuni also took a bribe of GHS25,000 from Mr Agongo in October 2014 to facilitate the award of one of the contracts by misrepresenting facts to the Public Procurement Authority.
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The state also said the 2014 contract was awarded without any price quotation.
But reacting to the issue, The MP said the country is running a parallel system where both the Minister of Justice as well as the Attorney General and the Special Prosecutor are performing the same function.
He said: “Today we are running parallel systems: Martin Amidu is sitting there and the Attorney General is in court doing Martin Amidu’s work. Why waste taxpayers’ money? That is exactly what is happening.”
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Why is it that Isaac Adongo all of a sudden wants Martin Amadu to handle Dr Opuni’s case? Didn’t Adongo and his NDC cohorts said the government has no case that is why no NDC member is in court? This is just the tip of the iceberg. Half of their appointees and ministers will be going to jail so they should get prepared. They thought they were going to rule forever. It serves them right. If in the next 100 years they get another chance to rule this great nation again they will not steal the state money and shared it amongst themselves. Thieves.