Okudzeto Renovates Office At ¢360m

But said the Hypocritical NPP must seek national interest.



The Deputy Minister for information, Samuel Okudzeto-Ablakwa, has said there is nothing wrong for him to report his predecessors for the Attorney General's Department to charge them for court over the contract for renovation of the Ministry of Information building.



He also stated that there was nothing wrong with his outfit using ¢360,000,000 in renovating his office which was part of the ministerial block that got burnt recently.



Mr. Okudzeto-Ablakwa made the statements when he was cross examined by Augustine Obuor, a lawyer for Frank Agyekum and Mr. Sampong, two of the accused persons in the case in which the former Minister for Information, Stephen Asamoah Boateng and seven others are standing trial for contravening the Procurement Act.



They allegedly did not follow due processes in awarding a contract amounting to ¢860,915,000 to plexiform company for renovation works at the Ministry. Mr. Okudzeto Ablakwa was asked, "Do you know you spent ¢360,000,000 to renovate your small single room office and that office was part of what Plexiform also renovated within the ministerial block for ¢86,000,000 and yet you are in court to challenge that?"



In response he said, Yes, I am aware but it is important to look at the detail description of both projects before comparing them." Mr. Okudzeto Ablakwa mentioned that the renovation of his office included provision of furniture, laptops, cabinet, carpet, ceiling and electrical works. Just before the deputy minister finished his statement, Justice Charles Quist, who observed that the issues were irrelevant to the matter before court, asked counsel to focus on the main reason for which they were in court.



Counsel further asked Mr. Okudzeto Ablakwa whether he was aware that the procurement act gave an option for annulment of contracts if certain irregularities were found, and if so, why he as the complainant did not take that option to save the time of the court and that of the public on this matter.



Mr. Okudzeto Ablakwa replied that the principle of the law was to eliminate corruption and check that due procedures were followed in awarding contracts in order not to give contracts to companies of choices. He was of the view that if contracts were annulled for reasons of irregularity, then it meant everybody could offend the law and go scot free.



Fooling, childish, wonderfully and abnormally, this same (Deputy Information) Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwah insists NPP is hypocritical, not nationalistic and borne out of personal parochial calculations.



He argued the NPP is afraid of staying in opposition in perpetuity if the government is able to use the revenue to be accrued from the oil revenue to collateralize for massive infrastructural development.



Ablakwa said, if they allow this to happen this government will have funds to develop this country and the people will be happy with the pace of development which might not make it easy for them to win political power. This is only their political action.

I opine, Okudzeto Ablakwa, who renovated (only) his Office at the cost of ¢360,000,000 with tax payer’s money but saying the Hypocritical NPP must seek national interest, seems to be rather the BIGGEST HYPOCRITE.



http://www.ghanamma.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=26983:okudzeto-renovates-office-at-c360m-&catid=67:politics&Itemid=1392

FRANCIS TAWIAH (Duisburg – Germany)