Kennedy Agyapong, a hopeful presidential candidate for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has claimed that the Ministry of Energy owes him money for the supply of streetlights.
He made this revelation in an interview on TV3’s New Day programme on Wednesday, August 16, 2023. He said that he had provided over 2,400 streetlights to the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) through his company, Imperial World Ventures.
“Go to EOCO. I have provided streetlights in excess of 2,400. When the manufacturers are shipping, because there can be breakages, they give you extra, and once it is in the name of Ministry of Energy, you can’t take it out. So if you are fortunate and not even one gets broken… I did the supply, and they owe me. The Ministry of Energy owes me,” the Assin Central MP told the host, Roland Walker.
Mr Kennedy Agyapong did not disclose the date of the supply or the amount owed by the Ministry of Energy. He also did not explain why he supplied streetlights to EOCO, which is an anti-corruption agency.
Meanwhile, EOCO has not confirmed receiving any streetlights from Mr Agyapong or his company on its official website or social media platforms.
This is not the first time that Mr Agyapong’s company has been involved in a controversial contract with the Ministry of Energy. In 2018, the ministry awarded a GH¢100 million contract to Imperial World Ventures for the supply of streetlights across the country.
The contract was criticised by some members of the opposition and civil society groups, who accused the ministry of breaching procurement laws and favouring Mr Agyapong’s wife, Stella Wilson Agyapong, who is the owner of Imperial World Ventures.
However, the then Energy Minister, John Peter Amewu, defended the contract on the floor of Parliament, saying that it was awarded through restricted tendering with approval from the Public Procurement Authority and the Central Tender Review Committee.
He said that no law was violated and that Imperial World Ventures was qualified and competent to execute the contract.