Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa
The ranking member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of Parliament has asked the President, Nana Akufo-Addo to set up a Commission of Inquiry to probe the alleged corruption scandal surrounding the acquisition of chancery and ambassador’s residence for Ghana’s new mission in Oslo, Norway at the cost of $16.5 million.
Addressing a press conference yesterday in response to the Ministry’s press statement reacting to his claims on the alleged scandal in parliament on Monday, the ranking member, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, who is also the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for North Tongu, said the ministry’s press statement did not address the fundamental issues he raised on the floor of parliament but was full of personal attacks on his person.
He said he is addressing the press conference to set the records straight with documental proof because on the floor of parliament the Speaker prevented him from officially tendering all those official documents to support his claim.
According to the ranking member, he has all the authenticated official documents to prove that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had committed itself to buying the property in Oslo with the Ministry of Finance already releasing an amount of GH¢15.3 million in October, this year towards the payment of the property.
He explained that if he had not raised the matter on the floor on Monday to draw the House’s attention to the scandal, parliament would have gone ahead to approve the sum of $16.5million for the two properties in Oslo.
The ranking member said despite the fact that parliament has deferred the approval, there have been some financial commitments to the renovation of the property to be used as chancery.
He said as early as December 13, 2018, workers contracted by the buyer of the facilities were busy carrying out renovation works on the building.
He therefore asked the ministry to tell the whole nation who were behind the purchase of the property and a copy of the letter to the seller of the property that the ministry was backing out of the contract because it had found out that the cost of the property had been outrageously inflated.
By Thomas Fosu Jnr