Malik Basintale
Investigative journalist, Manasseh Azure Awuni, has issued a strong warning to Malik Basintale, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), urging him not to renew a sanitation contract with waste management company, Zoomlion Ghana Limited.
In a passionate appeal published this week on his Facebook, Manasseh described the proposed deal as a “theft” and declared that “it stinks to the heavens.”
The contentious contract, which, according to him, expired in September 2024, allegedly allots GH¢850 monthly per sanitation worker, but under its current structure, GH¢600 is retained by Zoomlion as management fees, leaving only GH¢250 for the sweepers—an amount many have decried as inhumane and exploitative.
Manasseh’s latest statement comes amid reports that the YEA board is considering a contract renewal, a move that the former YEA CEO under the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Kofi Agyapong, firmly resisted before his exit.
Mr. Agyapong is reported to have notified Zoomlion of the contract’s termination last year after citing a lack of accountability and transparency.
According to Manasseh, multiple investigations, including a 2017 documentary titled: “Robbing the Assemblies”, have revealed widespread discrepancies in Zoomlion’s service delivery. He cited documents and testimonies indicating that the actual number of cleaners employed under the scheme is unverifiable.
He also indicated that several Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs) have had to employ their own sweepers due to the absence of those allegedly managed by Zoomlion.
According to him, cleaners often go unpaid for over a year, despite the government consistently disbursing funds to the company.
Manasseh also highlighted official complaints by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) in 2022, whose then-Mayor, Elizabeth Sackey, questioned the presence and performance of Zoomlion sweepers under the YEA contract.
Zoomlion failed to produce verifiable records to back its claim of employing 45,000 sanitation workers nationwide, according to Manasseh and former YEA CEO Justin Frimpong Kodua, now the General Secretary of the NPP.
“Why must the supervisor receive GH¢ 600 to manage a worker who is paid just GH¢ 250? And how can we continue paying for work that isn’t being done?” Manasseh questioned.
He also alleged that successive governments—from the Mahama administration to Akufo-Addo’s tenure—turned a blind eye to the financial irregularities surrounding the Zoomlion contracts, either out of complicity or political convenience.
Manasseh is now calling on the current YEA CEO and other young NDC politicians, including Osman Abdulai Ayariga and Eric Edem Agbana, to resist any pressure to reintroduce the deal.
“If any contract is signed, you will be held responsible,” Manasseh warned Basintale, urging him to empower the waste management departments within the MMDAs to take over the supervision of sanitation workers.
Zoomlion CEO, Elder Joseph Siaw-Agyapong recently told Parliament that sweepers work only four hours a day, six days a week—a justification many, including Manasseh, have rejected as insufficient to warrant the management fee and disregard for labour rights.
“This is not just about numbers or documents. It’s about dignity, fairness, and responsible governance,” Manasseh noted, adding that he has substantial documentation, including video evidence, to support his claims.
A Daily Guide Report