I have read there is a delegation sent on a fact-finding mission to Qatar to further investigations on the above contract between the state (ECG) and the Power Distribution Service (PDS) signed over power storage and distribution in the country.
The team is to help unravel what is being described as one of the biggest scandals in the history of the nation. This follows a swift suspension of a takeover of PDS from one of the nations most criticized establishments in history, in the wake of the historic dumsor (power crisis), the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), weeks ago.
Quite characteristic of the GH I come from, you can be sure the confusion around the investigation will further take a dramatic turn should the delegation return or to make known findings, so in their absence perhaps, it may be a good time to have a bite at the issue from a patriotic perspective.
I get not more than one thing from this razzmatazz – there is the usual politics surrounding the PDS-ECG deal. My thoughts, however, will be parallel to opinions held of the deal. There will always be an exaggeration into the matter to draw propaganda lines as well as there will always be those who will conceal the truth which may further damage the nation.
There seem to be a lot more to the issue and this has led to the minority in parliament petitioning the US government. While I support a rigorous and ruthless probe into a possible 3 billion dollar-scandal, we need to ask ourselves some few questions as a nation:
Granted there were truly anomalies on the face of the documents tendered in by PDS, how did these anomalies slip through? Who were in charge of the process, is it only the state, the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA), the top brass lawyers? At which point was the deal initiated and completed and which regime supervised this? Did the state do the public interest good by immediately freezing the concessionaire agreement which had already taken effect?
What if the NPP had concealed this even after realizing this for the fear of this political trappings; would the NDC have in their second coming blew the cover after inheriting such scandal? Wouldn’t it have been the same path we would have walked? Or is there any other way the state could have handled the issue after discovering the breaches?
If you answered yes to any or all of the above, it certainly means we must try as much as possible to avoid allowing politics to defile patriotism at all times especially in the highest places of leadership, outsourcing and businesses.
In one instance, the over politicization of every issue in this country is what is creating so many economic problems for us as well as the neglect of basic provisions to our communities and institutions. Second is the lack of transparency and truth. If truth is viewed as a holistic, an unapproved fact until due diligence, we will save our country lots of money.
Does it always have to take a political twist before democracy works? And does it also always have to be about bloating budgets and swindling deals even in the face of irregularities for the sake of parochial interest.?
Indeed, politics have defiled almost every patriotic sense in this country and it shows in every major issue or scandal that has popped up across regimes. The PDS-ECG scandal is just one of such issues which raises concerns over the love that we have for the taxpayer’s money and the nation’s projects.
