Former General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and now serving as Senior Advisor to independent presidential candidate Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen, Nana Ohene Ntow has voiced strong disapproval regarding the NPP’s support for the contentious revenue assurance contract between the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and Strategic Mobilisation Limited (SML).
In a recent statement, Ohene Ntow expressed concern over individuals such as Majority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin defending the GRA-SML deal, highlighting that the contract did not meet the necessary conditions for sole sourcing.
He particularly criticized the selection of SML, labeling it a “nascent company.”
Afenyo-Markin responded to calls for the full disclosure of KPMG’s report on the GRA-SML deal during a press conference in Accra on May 3.
He asserted that it is not within anyone’s right to demand copies of the report, clarifying that the report serves as advisory to the President and not subject to public release.
In a separate discussion on TV3’s The Key Points program, Ohene Ntow compared the GRA-SML deal to the ECG and PDS contract, expressing concerns over similarities in their structures.
He pointed out what he considered to be established illegalities in the contract and criticized government officials, including Afenyo-Markin, for supporting it.
“This issue becomes of big concern, especially with PDS in mind…PDS was not going to generate electricity, PDS was not going to provide any transmission facilities, just revenue collection. And the arrangement under which PDS contract was done is quite similar to this one [GRA-SML deal]. And those are the things that will raise concerns of nationally-minded citizens.”
“All the illegalities have been established beyond doubt, that this is a contract that you couldn’t have said should go for sole-sourcing. And all the explanations and the conditions under which sole-sourcing can be done…none of these were met and yet you go for sole-sourcing.
“This company is a nascent company, a company that was just born without any experience, no parliamentary and people in government, including the Majority Leader, Afenyo-Markin, are defending this matter. I mean, it’s very worrying,” he noted.
The controversy surrounding the GRA-SML contract continues to draw attention, with stakeholders expressing divergent opinions on its legality and transparency.