The National Democratic Congress (NDC) is asking the government to be bold and render a detailed account of revenue generated from the botched operations of the Power Distribution Services (PDS).
According to the opposition party, the government’s decision to terminate the fraudulent contract with PDS has led to a huge loss of state funds that must be properly accounted for.
At a media engagement, the NDC’s National Communication Officer, Sammy Gyamfi argued that the party’s audit shows how PDS accrued revenue to the tune of GHS 1.5 billion that has not been declared by the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP).
“From our checks, the total amount of monies PDS collected from electricity consumers in the form of electricity bills was over GHS 1.5 billion, but we have not heard any official communication from the Akufo-Addo government even though it’s been well over a year since the notorious PDS concessionaire arrangement was terminated because of a fraudulent demand guarantee. For this matter, Ghanaians and electricity consumers ought to know the amount of money we paid to that fraudulent entity called PDS.”
Additionally, the NDC is demanding from the government the list of persons who were behind the fraudulent deal together with findings of investigations conducted into the saga.
“Since the Minister for Energy, honourable Peter John Amewu told Ghanaians that the insurance guarantee PDS presented for the takeover of the over 20 billion worth of assets of ECG, which allegedly issued the said guarantee, who were those who perpetrated this fraud, and what actions has President Akufo-Addo taken to ensure that they answer for this fraud”? Sammi Gyamfi quizzed.
Why the deal was terminated
PDS was, in July 2019, found to have presented invalid insurance security for the takeover of ECG assets.
The company was initially supposed to furnish the ECG with payment securities in the form of either a demand guarantee or a letter of credit issued by a bank.
The insurance guarantee came about because of difficulties experienced with raising a bank guarantee.
PDS appealed to use a demand guarantee issued by an A-rated insurance company.
PDS thus submitted the Payment Securities in the form of demand guarantees issued by a Qatari insurance firm, Al Koot Insurance and Reinsurance, which eventually became the source fraud after it was discovered that there were fabricated letters and forged signatures.
The government also noted that Al Koot did not have the capacity to engage in such a transaction-based on its net worth.
The company was also not authorised to issue demand guarantees.
