Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, a Member of the North Tongu constituency, contends that the Akufo-Addo-led government has sanctioned the disbursement of US$20 million, equivalent to GH¢230.5 million, to settle a judgment debt.
He asserts that despite the government’s claim of a lack of funds for emergency housing for victims of the Akosombo Dam spillage, it has allocated funds to cover a judgment debt incurred by the government.
Ablakwa, in a tweet observed by GhanaWeb Business, emphasized that the ministers responsible for wrongfully terminating the contract with the Ghana Power Generation Company (GPGC) would face consequences on the day of reckoning.
“The Akufo-Addo/Bawumia/Ofori-Atta government claims it so broke that they cannot provide emergency housing for VRA-induced flood victims but fresh intercepted documents reveal that they have authorized the release of a staggering GHS230.5million (US$ 20 million) to pay for a judgment debt they recklessly & wickedly created,” part of his tweet read.
“I hope the Ministers who wrongfully terminated the GPGC contract and willfully caused financial loss to Ghana are preparing for the day of reckoning,” it added.
Trafigura, the majority shareholder of the power company GPGC, secured an award in January 2021 from an arbitral tribunal in London. The tribunal found that Ghana had unlawfully terminated a contract for the installation and operation of two power plants.
Consequently, properties including the Ghana High Commission building in the UK, which provides visa and other services, the commissioner’s residence, the Ghana International Bank building, and others, are at risk of being auctioned to offset a $140 million judgment debt owed to the Singaporean firm Trafigura.
Although the government has stated that the Finance Ministry is taking measures to settle the debt, Papa Owusu Ankomah, Ghana’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, attributes the default in payment to the financial constraints of the government. The termination of the deal in 2017, based on the Attorney General’s advice, cited high tariffs, potential costs of $115,480,000 to the state, and various reasons such as illegality, lack of capacity for GPGC to enter into a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), failure to obtain permits, installation of used plants contrary to policy, and GPGC’s failure to fulfill certain conditions.
Contrary to the government’s justification, the former Power Minister contends that among all the PPAs signed in 2016, GPGC had the most economical terms and the shortest lifespan of four years.