Bankswitch Saga: Ministers, Vatican Envoy Must Face Prosecution

HannahThe controversy surrounding the multimillion dollar Bankswitch judgment debt scandal which hit the government is far from over, as some Ghanaians are calling for the prosecution of Ms. Hannah Tetteh, Dr. Kwabena Dufuor and Mr. James Bebako Mensah.

It has emerged that the three personalities-Ms Hannah Tetteh, the current Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr Dufuor, a former Minister of Finance in the late Prof Mills administration and Mr. Bebako Mensah who was the secretary to the late President Mills now Ghana’s Ambassador to Vatican   played a key role in the cancellation of the contract in 2010.

Bankswitch in 2014, filed before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, the Netherlands, after the cancellation of the contract signed between the government of Ghana and Bankswitch Ghana Limited in 2007 to help government mobilize revenue at the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).

The introduction of Bankswitch into Ghana in 2007 was facilitated by a World Bank Loan to provide software and data, as well as establish the Valuation Module which would be owned by the Ghana Government and operated by the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to help stem the huge losses of revenue the country records at the ports.

The contract was signed at a time the State also had a contract with another firm, Ghana Community Network Services Limited (GCNET), a major player in all trading activities at Ghana’s Ports.

However, The Chronicle has established that some government officials preferred to have these private Destination Inspection Companies (DICs) do all the scanning, verification and valuation of all imports into the country and pushed for the abrogation of the Bankswitch contract, which has eventually landed the country in an unprecedented GHc197million judgment debt.

Former Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance and Economy, Dr. Anthony Akoto Osei, who is livid at the cancellation of the contract and subsequent award of judgment debt against the country, has called for the heads of the three powerful personalities.

According to him, the former Secretary to late President Atta Mills, James Bebako Mensah, should be called for questioning on the ongoing saga of the GHc197million judgment debt owed Bankswitch, an I T firm.

Mr. Mensah is alleged to have written a letter to then Minister of Finance, Dr. Kwabena Dufuor, on behalf of the late President Mills, directing Dr. Dufuor to terminate the contract awarded Bankswitch and engage GCNET with same responsibilities.

However, the management of Bankswitch had in an engagement with the late President Mills demonstrated how their valuation platform works and promised to maximize revenue for the country’s ports.

They had in effect directed by the late President to be awarded a temporarily three-month contract upon which their performance would be assessed and rewarded with a much-improved deal after clashing with some state officials over their previous contract awarded them in 2007 by the Kufuor-led government.

The GCNET which contract had then been abrogated by the Kufuor-led government for failing to execute a similar responsibility is said to have written to the late President Mills moments after his engagement with Bankswitch and requested to be re-awarded with the contract given Bankswitch since they could perform the valuation task at a no cost to the state.

But on the same day of the late President’s directive, Mr. Mensah is alleged to have written a different letter to Dr. Dufuor, directing him to consider and advise appropriately the re-engagement of GCNET instead of Bankswitch.

Dr. Dufuor is reported to have also written to the Commissioner of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) for advice. That advice, according to Dr. Akoto Osei, led to Bankswitch being kicked out of operations for GCNET to assume their role.
“Is there something fishy about the whole thing when President Mills had ordered that the company be given three months contract and that same day the President will again order for the termination of the contract and award it to another firm who claimed it could perform that contract for free? Do you think that is possible? He should answer for the mess,” he said on Kasapa FM, an Accra based radio station recently.

“The Ministry of Trade can answer that question, but Mr. Bebako who is the Ambassador to Vatican and is still alive can best respond to the issue,” said Dr. Akoto Osei who is the Member of Parliament (MP) for Old Tafo and Ranking Member of the Finance Committee.

A Financial Consultant and a whistleblower, Kudzo Apkabey, also stated that the right persons to answer questions about the cancellation of the controversial Bankswitch contract are Dr. Dufuor and Ms Hannah Tetteh.

According to him, both ministers cannot be left off the hook because their input led to the cancellation of the contract, which has left the country incurring the huge judgment debt. “We need to drag them to answer who cancelled it. They had no business… no business cancelling it”, he said on Peace FM’s morning show, Kokrokoo, Tuesday.

In a move to settle the monstrous judgment debt, Ghana’s Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr. Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, was reported to have asked five DICs with the capacity to contribute  $35 million each towards repaying the judgment debt to assist government.

This has generated criticism against government. Some opposition politicians and civil society organisations believe the move constitutes bribery.

But Dr. Spio-Gabrah has challenged the critics to show which law in the country has been broken, in asking DICs to pay for the debts, in return for contracts.

The minister maintained his action was in the best interest of the country and was to protect the public purse. He stated: “Which law has been broken here? Cite the law which I have offended. Have I stolen something or paid illegal money… I am working in broad daylight with as much transparency and as open as possible”.

African Eye News.com

 

 

Related posts

Leave a Reply

*