Minority takes on gov’t over $2m pumped into Sky Train project

The Minority Caucus in Parliament has strongly criticised the government for paying $2 million to a firm in Mauritius, Africa Investor Holdings Limited, for the Accra Sky Train Project without parliamentary and the requisite public procurement approvals.

The Caucus contends that the government has also invested over $20 million dollars in terms of equity into the Accra City Pullman Hotel project without any work on-site for almost two years now.

Speaking to journalists in Parliament, the Minority Chief Whip, Governs Agbodza took a swipe at the government for what he describes as reckless public expenditure and demanded an investigation into such losses.

He questioned the processes that went on before such an authorization was made for the payment to be made.

“Before the company even started feasibility studies, someone in government had decided to pay $2 million to this entity and somewhere this year, Joe Ghartey said he has never said the government was going to fund the sky train project, and I am not sure he was reading what he had written because what was the $2 million meant for?”

“The Auditor General report said the company didn’t have the license to operate the system that it wanted to operate and so the question is what was the reason for the government to give the company the money and who gave the directive for the payment?”

“It was wrong to take any decision to pay that money and so who authorized the payment in terms of the so-called feasibility and which normal entity pays out $2 million for a feasibility study before the project is determined whether it is bankable and so these things only happen when there is organized crime. When people are careless and reckless, and I think the minimum the Auditor General can do is to call for a refund,” Mr Agbodza added.

Source: citinewsroom