Brogya Genfi, is among other things, praying the Court to “set aside” the agreement on grounds that it is “not in the national interest of Ghana, and contravenes articles (1 (2), 2, 11, 33, 125, 135, 140, 75 and 73 of the 1992 constitution.”

[contextly_sidebar id=”iBNXa44jbWTPk94WRGKEyf10Uy9X9oMl”]Speaking on Eyewitness News on Monday, the former deputy Interior Minister under the John Mahama administration said the suit against the agreement was justified because Parliament had acted unconstitutionally by ratifying the deal on Friday.

According to him the document that was laid before the House for ratification did not include the signatures of the parties involved in the deal, rendering the deal and Parliament’s further actions null and void.

He added that in order for Parliament to have been able to ratify the document, it needed to have been assented to by the government.

“The agreements signed in 1998 and 2015 are fundamentally different from the 2018 agreement which was passed by Parliament unconstitutionally on Friday. If you look at the Constitution, Parliament can only pass executed international agreements, parliament does not, cannot and should not ever ratify draft agreements. But unfortunately that is what we did, we ratified an agreement that was yet to be executed,” he said.

James Agalga stated that despite drawing the attention to the alleged illegalities, Minority MPs were ignored and the deal was eventually approved.

“We drew the attention of the House, the Minority Leader did that in very clear language, we did that at the level of the Committee and yet they just railroaded the entire process and got the agreement passed. Now we have been slapped with a suit,” he added.

In the suit, which has the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Gloria Akuffo and Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul as the defendants, Mr. Genfi is demanding a “declaration that the word ‘ratify’ used within the provisions of Article 75 of the 1992 constitution is a term of art which has a true meaning of incorporating international law and treaties into the domestic legal system of the Republic of Ghana and not prior approval or approval.”

Another relief being sought by the plaintiff is a declaration that the “ratification by Parliament of the supposed agreement between Ghana and the Government of United States of America on Defence Cooperation, the Status of United States Forces, and Access to and use of agreed facilities and areas in the Republic of Ghana (hereinafter referred to as Defence Co-operation Agreement) on March 24, 2018, when the supposed agreement had not been executed by the President or person authorized by the President as provided for by Article 75 of the 1992 constitution, is contrary to the said Article 75 of the 1992 constitution and same is null and void.”

When asked whether the Minority intended to file a similar claim against the deal in court, James Agalga said: “It’s our mandate to do so as citizens. I wouldn’t hesitate. At the Committee level, we raised those objections. In Parliament, Haruna Iddrisu made the statement in very clear language so we will not hesitate at all. A citizen has already taken the lead. In terms of us solidarising with the citizen, I wouldn’t hesitate.”

“A citizen felt aggrieved by the conduct of Parliament and decided to act as such. As citizens, we are enjoined to uphold the Constitution at all times so the person felt that we had violated Article 75 and decided to go to court and seek redress. it envisages that before international agreements, treaties or conventions are signed, they must first been executed by the President or his agent prior to being laid in Parliament for ratification. The agreement is not signed, the Americans did not sign it and we did not either. We didn’t want to partake in any unconstitutional behaviour,” he added.

Deal ratified

The suit comes days after Parliament ratified the pact despite stiff opposition from the Minority.

The approval was done by only Majority members because the Minority members staged a walkout during the debate on the floor of Parliament.

With the agreement ratified, it means that the US troops will among other things be exempted from paying taxes on equipment that are brought to Ghana as well as use Ghana’s radio spectrum for free.

The troops and their equipment will also have unhindered access to the US forces and their equipment.

The Government has consistently explained that it was only respecting the existing Status of Forces Agreement with the US signed since 1998 and reviewed in 2015, under the previous NDC administration.

But the NDC Minority has downplayed this argument saying the agreement as existed in the past, did not have the same clauses like the current one that gives the US unlimited access to Ghana’s military facilities.

The US Embassy in Ghana has also explained that it is only planning joint security exercises with Ghana, which will require that US military personnel are allowed access to Ghana’s military facilities and that they are not building a military base.

The deal has caused some discomfort among some sections of the public, with a group calling itself Ghana First, serving notice it will demonstrate on Wednesday, March 28, against its approval.

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By: Edwin Kwakofi/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Minority MP backs suit against ‘unconstitutional’ US military camp deal appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Brogya Genfi is, among other things, praying the Court to “set aside” the agreement on grounds that it is “not in the national interest of Ghana, and contravenes articles (1 (2), 2, 11, 33, 125, 135, 140, 75 and 73 of the 1992 constitution.”

[contextly_sidebar id=”JLtqhlVeZ29Mj0GC2uTydcVo2dLm5Myf”] Mr. Genfi is demanding eight reliefs in all, including a “declaration that the word ‘ratify’ used within the provisions of Article 75 of the 1992 constitution is a term of art which has a true meaning of incorporating international law and treaties into the domestic legal system of the Republic of Ghana and not prior approval or approval.”

Another relief being sought by the plaintiff is a declaration that the “ratification by Parliament of the supposed agreement between Ghana and the Government of United States of America on Defence Cooperation, the Status of United States Forces, and Access to and use of agreed facilities and areas in the Republic of Ghana (hereinafter referred to as Defence Co-operation Agreement) on March 24, 2018, when the supposed agreement had not been executed by the President or person authorized by the President as provided for by Article 75 of the 1992 constitution, is contrary to the said Article 75 of the 1992 constitution and same is null and void.”

The Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Gloria Akuffo and Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul, are the defendants in the case.

The suit comes days after Parliament ratified the pact despite stiff opposition from the Minority.

The approval was done by only Majority members because the Minority members staged a walkout during the debate on the floor of Parliament.

With the agreement ratified, it means that the US troops will among other things be exempted from paying taxes on equipment that are brought to Ghana as well as use Ghana’s radio spectrum for free.

The troops and their equipment will also have unhindered access to the US forces and their equipment.

Although many Ghanaians have expressed resentment over the clauses of the agreement, the Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul, said the agreement is in the best interest of Ghana.

The Government has consistently explained that it was only respecting the existing Status of Forces Agreement with the US signed since 1998 and reviewed in 2015, under the previous NDC administration.

But the NDC Minority has downplayed this argument saying the agreement as existed in the past, did not have the same clauses like the current one that gives the US unlimited access to Ghana’s military facilities.

The US Embassy in Ghana has also explained that it is only planning joint security exercises with Ghana, which will require that US military personnel are allowed access to Ghana’s military facilities and that they are not building a military base.

–

By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post NDC’s Brogya Genfi sues gov’t over US ‘military base’ deal appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

He further called on the President to direct the Auditor General to audit the accounts of the committee.

“I call on President Akufo-Addo to subject the GH@60 Secretariat to a special audit by the Auditor General if he wants to salvage his government’s sinking image in the fight against corruption. The President has the power to refer special cases for audit to the Auditor General,” he said in statement.

The 30-member Ghana@60 committee was formed in 2017 prior to Ghana’s 60^th independence day celebration, to oversee the organization of programmes for the celebration.

President Akufo-Addo had during the formation committee charged the team to generate an amount of GHc20 million as budget for the programmes and projects from sponsorship by corporate entities.

But a year down the line, Chairman of the Committee, Ken Amankwah, has told Citi News that the Committee was unable to achieve most of its ambitious programmes last year [2017] due to the lack of funds.

Some of the projects included the building of 60 libraries in deprived areas across all 10 regions in the country.

But Brogya Genfi, who believes the committee received enough funds from corporate entities in a statement said an audit will help unravel other details about the committee’s work.

[contextly_sidebar id=”O6tvy0LO3zcQ69w581Bnrzq4eAoDbDge”]Brogya Genfi in the statement said there were a number of donations from corporate Ghana to support the projects by the committee hence the excuse by the Chairman could not be accepted.

“A cursory additions of financial support extended by the private sector from media reports (excluding donations in private) points to the fact that the Ghana @60 Secretariat got more than enough funds to execute all their plans.”

“The ‘cock and bull’ stories made up by the Secretariat give more credence to my call for a special audit to be commissioned by His Excellency President Akufo-Addo using the Auditor General of Ghana. We all thought that any NPP government would have been guided by the bizarre experience of the Ghana @50 celebration and its expenditure. Unfortunately for Ghanaians, they (NPP) are still on their old ways of dissipating public funds and mostly using public good as a decoy to extort huge cash from the unsuspecting private sector,” the statement added.

Ghana@60 c’ttee tried procuring Ghana flags from China

The 60th Independence Anniversary Planning Committee flirted with the idea of procuring Ghana flags from China before ultimately shelving the idea because of time constraints.
This is according to

Ken Amankwah had said they almost procured some Ghana flags which was supposed to be used to commemorate the 60th anniversary from China

Speaking on Eyewitness News, Mr. Amankwah said these flags were originally being printed from China “but we couldn’t bring them down from there so we had to fall on local printers and they couldn’t meet the quantities they wanted.”

Find below for Brogya Genfi’s full statement:

Auditor General must audit GH@60 Secretariat

I call on President Akufo-Addo to subject the GH@60 Secretariat to a special audit by the Auditor General if he wants to salvage his government’s sinking image in the fight against corruption.

The President has the power to refer special cases for audit to the Auditor General.

We all remember when the President mentioned that the GH@60 project will be a year long project with a budget of GHC20million. And that, NO PUBLIC FUNDS will be expended on the Anniversary Events and projects.

He again mentioned, that they were going to build 6 Libraries in each region – making up 60 Libraries in all across the country.

Again, the Secretariat informed Ghanaians that they will organise a Jubilee Technology Start-up Challenge and many other things. None of these promises have been fulfilled even though their mandate has expired since we are now in Ghana @61.

In spite of the public outcry of the large size of the committee members (30 members), the President assured the nation of value for money.

We as Ghanaians have been vindicated since the 30 member committee has nothing to show for now.

There were several contributions from the private sector in addition to the releases from the Ministry of Finance and the Districts Assemblies’ Common Fund Secretariat amounting to over GHC5million.

This clearly indicates that over 25% of the budget for the Ghana @60 Secretariat was funded using Public funds.

A cursory additions of financial supports extended by the private sector from media reports (excluding donations in private) points to the fact that the Ghana @60 Secretariat got more than enough funds to execute all their plans.

The ‘cock and bull’ stories made up by the Secretariat give more credence to my call for a special audit to be commissioned by His Excellency President Akufo-Addo using the Auditor General of Ghana.

We all thought that any NPP government would have been guided by the bizarre experience of the Ghana @50 celebration and it’s expenditure.
Unfortunately for Ghanaians, they (NPP) are still on their old ways of dissipating public funds and mostly using public good as a decoy to extort huge cash from the unsuspecting private sector.

Below are some of the supports from the Private Sector which were made public:

http://citifmonline.com/2017/03/03/gcnet-supports-ghana-60-with-250000-cedis/

http://citibusinessnews.com/index.php/2017/03/01/omnibank-donates-to-ghana60-committee/

https://mobile.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/BOST-CEO-incurs-wrath-of-unpaid-staff-over-GHS1m-Ghana-60-donation-518345

https://mobile.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Ghana-60-EIB-Express-Capital-donate-to-committee-513002

https://www.graphic.com.gh/news/general-news/unibank-supports-ghana-60-celebrations-with-gh-300-000.html

https://www.graphic.com.gh/business/business-news/sahel-sahara-bank-supports-ghana-60-with-gh-100-000.html

https://www.myjoyonline.com/business/2017/march-15th/beige-supports-ghana-60-with-ghs-60000.php

https://mobile.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Ghana-60-3-individuals-donate-Ghc3-000-000-each-to-committee-513017

It is my prayer that the President will heed to this and similar calls for accountability in this matter in order to restore Public confidence in his acclaimed war on corruption, which is fast becoming a mere rhetoric.

Yaw Brogya Genfi
(ASHANTI REGIONAL YOUTH ORGANIZER – NDC)

–

By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
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According to him, although Brogya Genfi, the Ashanti Regional Youth Organizer of the NDC was fronting the action, the likes of Tamale Central MP, Inusah Fuseini, Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, Minority Chief Whip,Muntaka Mubarak, North Tongu MP, Okudzeto Ablakwa, Ketu South, Fiifi Kwetey were pulling the strings.

“They are a group of destructive citizens. Brogya Genfi led the whole thing but behind him is a whole arsenal in the likes of Inusah Fuseini, Haruna Iddrisu, Muntaka Mubarak, Okudzeto Ablakwa, Fiifi Kwetey. And all that team are there supporting what he is doing in a mischievous way to try and derail the progress of the country,” he said in Citi FM’s news analysis programme, The Big Issue yesterday [Saturday].

[contextly_sidebar id=”7zgQuNLluCDoFEXgChN8Se5XdAc2VQhP”]According to Information Minister, Mustapha Hamid, Ken Ofori Atta has indicated that he is going to court to compel the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to overturn some of the declarations made against him following the petition submitted to the Commission by Brogya Genfi.

Genfi, in April 2017, petitioned CHRAJ to investigate the $2.25 billion bond issued by government, citing possible conflict of interest in the deal with regards to the Finance Minister and his alleged acquaintances, whom Genfi claimed had bought the bond at convenient rates.

CHRAJ, after months of investigations, said Ofori-Atta breached certain processes in the issuance of the bond but cleared him of all claims of conflict of interest.

Minority pushes for Ofori-Atta’s dismissal

On the back of the CHRAJ report, the Minority called on President Akufo-Addo to sack the Finance Minister, for breaching aspects of the law in the issuance of the bond

They have also suggested that the Finance Minister could alternatively resign over the matter.

“We serve notice that in the event that the President, Nana Akufo-Addo does not exercise appropriate judgment, we will initiate an action of censurship against the Minister. We in the minority feel strongly vindicated by the [CRAHJ] report… All of us must uphold the laws of Ghana including the Minister for Finance,” Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu said.

Ofori-Atta won’t resign

But Casely-Hayford is sceptical over the call for the removal of the Finance Minister by the Minority.

According to him, such action won’t materialize as the President would not be willing to get rid of such a crucial member of his government.

“He will not resign. The president, his boss will not sack him. The motion of censure will not work. His boss has no desire to dismiss his Finance Minister. The whole thing is an exercise in futility and it will not work. They [Minority] know that it will not work,” he added.

I’ll join Ofori-Atta’s suit – Brogya Genfi
In a related development, Brogya Genfi, had said he will file a joinder application should Ofori-Atta drag CHRAJ to court over its findings on the issuance of the $2.25 billion bond.

“I am very interested in it and as an interested party, I am going to join anything that the Finance Minister will institute against CHRAJ because I sent the petition to CHRAJ,” Genfi said in a Citi News interview.

–

By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
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“I am very interested in it and as an interested party, I am going to join anything that the Finance Minister will institute against CHRAJ because I sent the petition to CHRAJ,” Genfi said in a Citi News interview.

Genfi, in April 2017, petitioned CHRAJ to investigate the $2.25 billion bond issued by government, citing possible conflict of interest in the deal with regards to the Finance Minister and his alleged acquaintances, whom Genfi claimed had bought the bond at convenient rates.

[contextly_sidebar id=”ypQxowiaH2UgZ864r2ltnt7jkbh3VcZ3″]CHRAJ, after months of investigations, said Ofori-Atta breached certain processes in the issuance of the bond but cleared him of all claims of conflict of interest.

The Information Minister, Mustapha Hamid, at a press conference on Thursday hinted that the Finance Minister would head to court to challenge aspects of CHRAJ’s report that indicted him.

But speaking to Citi News, Brogya Genfi said the reasons given by the Finance Minister for the possible suit against CHRAJ were untenable.

“If you read the report, you will know that the Finance Minister was being investigated on Article 284 of the 1992 Constitution. CHRAJ only found out as part of its investigation that the Finance Minister did not disclose some of his assets. Now CHRAJ did not go further to do further investigation on that matter. They did not sanction the Minister; neither did they give a conclusion on that matter so what is the Finance Minister going to do in court?” he queried.

Article 284 of the Constitution states that “A public officer shall not put himself in a position where his personal interest conflicts or is likely to conflict with the performance of the functions of his office.”

Brogya petitions CHRAJ again

According to Genfi he has petitioned CHRAJ again on the matter, this time urging it to delve deeper into the asset declaration aspect of the first report.

“In fact, I have presented a second petition to CHRAJ invoking article 287 which deals with article 286 of the Constitution bordering on assets disclosure. So I think they [Finance Minister and government spokespersons] are just making noise about it. They have stated that CHRAJ didn’t have the mandate to investigate all of that. If you go to the report and open to page 97, CHRAJ justified why they delved into those matters,” he argued.

$2.25billion bond controversies

The controversy over the bond began after the Minority called for a full-scale parliamentary probe into how persons they referred to as very close friends of the Finance Minister, purchased 95 percent of the $2.25 billion bond issue in April 2017.

The NDC’s Ashanti Regional Youth Organizer, Yaw Brongya Genfi, subsequently petitioned CHRAJ to investigate the bond on grounds that Mr. Ofori Atta attempted to promote his personal interests, as well as those of his family and friends.

On the substantive matter of conflict of interest, CHRAJ cleared Mr. Ofori-Atta of any wrongdoing, stating that, “on the basis of the evidence available to the Commission, it has come to the conclusion and therefore holds that, the allegations by the complainant that the respondent has contravened Article 284 of the 1992 Constitution by putting himself in a conflict of interest situation in relation to the issuance of the 5-year, 7-year, 10-year and 15-year bonds, have not been substantiated.”

CHRAJ, however, said that the Finance Minister, breached certain processes in the issuance of the bond.

In its 140-page report on the matter, CHRAJ made some suggestions to the Minister of Finance to ensure that due diligence is ensured in subsequent deals.

Among other directives, it said the Minister must pass regulations to monitor the format of and criteria for the auctions, and the procedures for participation, bidding, and allocation in auctions in relation to the issuance of securities in the domestic market.

CHRAJ further charged the Minister take measures in preventing Primary Dealers who are also bookrunners or transaction advisors from gaining the unfair advantage because of their dual roles.

It had found the Primary Dealers also doubled up as bookrunners or transaction advisors, and that dual role gave them an undue advantage.

Group sues Ofori-Atta, AG, CHRAJ over $2.25 bn bond

A group calling itself Dynamic Youth Organisation of Ghana, has also sued the Finance Minister, the Attorney General and the Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice [CHRAJ] over the issuance of the bond.

The Convener for this new group, Edward Tutor, speaking on Eyewitness News last week explained that, the decision to clear Mr. Ofori Atta of any wrongdoing contravenes Article 284 of the constitution.

Mr. Tutor said their suit is to, therefore, invoke the Supreme Court to interpret Article 284 of the 1992 constitution.

Ofori-Atta to sue CHRAJ

Meanwhile, the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, may be dragging CHRAJ to court, over its handling of the petition in relation to the $2.25 billion bond issue.

He is heading to court to compel CHRAJ to overturn some of the declarations it considers irrelevant to the petition.

Addressing a news conference in Accra on Thursday, the Information Minister, Mustapha Hamid, said the Finance Minister believes CHRAJ went “beyond the matter of conflict of interest to make pronouncements on other matters that it was not seized with the capacity to make.”

This was announced after the Minority in Parliament had reiterated their calls on the Minister to resign or be forced out constitutionally based on the findings of the CHRAJ report.

–

By: Godwin A. Allotey & Zoe Abu-Baidu/citifmonline.com/Ghana
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He made the comment in reaction to CHRAJ’s release of the report on its investigation of the minister over allegations of conflict of interest in the issuance of the bond.

[contextly_sidebar id=”8Sj8pZnaioH2KoiRDr7a6rPwsEFuSjY1″]Genfi, who petitioned CHRAJ in April 2017 over the allegation said in a statement copied to citifmonline.com that he was studying the 140-page report with his lawyers and will indicate publicly his remarks “in due course”.

CHRAJ, after months of investigation, said Mr. Ofori-Atta breached certain processes in the issuance of the bond, however, it cleared him of all claims of conflict of interest in the issuance of the bond.

“..the evidence so far indicts him [Ken Ofori-Atta] of several illegalities which constitutes enough grounds for his removal from office,” he said.

He further commended CHRAJ for “a meticulous work done.”

We’ve been vindicated – Minority

Meanwhile, the Minority in Parliament believe they have been vindicated CHRAJ’s findings on the matter.

In a statement copied to citifmonline.com, the Minority Leader, Haruna Idrissu, said “the adverse findings contained in the decision of the CHRAJ vindicate our position that the US$ 2.25 Billion bond issuance was fraught with irregularities and did not comply with Ghanaian law.”

The Minority say they will hold a press conference in the coming week on the outcome of CHRAJ’s investigations.

How did this start?

Parliament in June 2017,  summoned the Finance Minister to provide detailed information on the 2.25 billion dollar bond, following a motion filed by the Minority.

Concerns had been raised, particularly by the opposition, in relation to the transparency of the $2.25 billion domestic bond, with some noting that the apparent secrecy over the deal fueled the allegations of conflict of interest against the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori Atta.

The Minority said a non-executive director on the board of Investment Firm, Franklin Templeton, who purchased 95 percent of the $2.25 billion bond, is also the Chairman of the Enterprise Group, which has links to the Attorney-General and the Finance Minister.

The Minority eventually called for a full-scale parliamentary probe into the bond issue.

–

By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post CHRAJ report grounds for Ofori-Atta’s removal – Brogya Genfi appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) MPs say CHRAJ’s revelation that the Minister breached several processes in the issuance of the bond confirms claims of wrongdoing although he was not found guilty of conflict of interest.

[contextly_sidebar id=”ictFsX8Qh9ECtraYLsXyZm7AvrxckxhY”]In a statement copied to citifmonline.com, the Minority Leader, Haruna Idrissu, said “the adverse findings contained in the decision of the CHRAJ vindicate our position that the US$ 2.25 Billion bond issuance was fraught with irregularities and did not comply with Ghanaian law.”

The Minority say they will hold a press conference in the coming week on the outcome of the CHRAJ investigations.

Read the full statement below:

MINORITY STATEMENT ON DAMNING FINDINGS AGAINST FINANCE MINISTER BY CHRAJ IN US$ 2.25 BILLION BOND INVESTIGATION

The Minority Caucus in Parliament has become aware of findings contained in the decision of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) on a complaint filed against the Finance Minister over the infamous US$ 2.25 billion bond in March this year.

Contrary to some publications on a number of online portals to the effect that the Finance Minister has been cleared of wrongdoing, CHRAJ in its decision agrees largely with our stated position from the very beginning that the bond issuance did not follow due process.

CHRAJ in its summary of key findings noted several breaches of statutory regulations governing the issuance of bonds and cited the Minister for conduct bordering on criminality.

It is the considered position of the Minority that the adverse findings contained in the decision of the CHRAJ vindicate our position that the US$ 2.25 Billion bond issuance was fraught with irregularities and did not comply with Ghanaian law.

We will engage the media next week to provide details of our position on the outcome of the investigations and consequential matters.

We wish Ghanaians a happy new year.

Haruna Iddrisu (MP).

Parliament in June 2017 was forced to summon the Finance Minister to provide detailed information on the 2.25 billion dollar bond following a motion filed by the Minority.

Concerns had been raised especially by the Minority about the transparency of the $2.25 billion domestic bond with some noting that the apparent secrecy over the deal fueled the allegations of conflict of interest against the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori Atta.

The Minority in its conflict of interest allegations, said a non-executive director on the board of Investment Firm, Franklin Templeton, who purchased 95 percent of the $2.25 billion bond, is also the Chairman of the Enterprise Group, which has links to the Attorney-General and the Finance Minister.

The Minority eventually called for a full-scale parliamentary probe into the bond issue.

CHRAJ petitioned

A member of the NDC, Brogya Genfi, in April petitioned CHRAJ to investigate the matter on grounds that the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, had attempted to “promote a personal interest for himself, as well as family and friends, which interfered with the objective exercise of his duties.”

CHRAJ, after months of investigation, said Mr. Ofori-Atta breached certain processes in the issuance of the bond, however, it did not find him involved in a conflict of interest position.

–

By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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“On the basis of the evidence available to the Commission, it has come to the conclusion and therefore holds that, the allegations by the complainant that the respondent has contravened Article 284 of the 1992 Constitution by putting himself in a conflict of interest situation in relation to the issuance of the 5-year, 7-year, 10-year and 15-year bonds, have not been substantiated,” it said in its report on the matter.

[contextly_sidebar id=”VZD0qpdoUnwDcpUxBximlXhw1ZWYJFR3″]CHRAJ commenced the investigations five months ago after  a known member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Yaw Brogya Genfi, petitioned it in April, to investigate Ken Ofori-Atta’s position in the issuance of the bond.

According to Mr. Genfi, Ken Ofori-Atta, secured 95 percent of the bond for his family and friends.

He said Mr. Ofori Atta “has attempted to promote a private or personal interest for himself or for some family members and business associates, and the promotion of the private interest has resulted in, or was intended to result in, or appears to have resulted in, or has the potential to result in an interference with the objective exercise of his duties and an improper benefit or an advantage by virtue of his position.”

According to him, the bonds were not on the issuance calendar, and that the transaction seemed to have been shrouded in secrecy with the bond processes being limited to one day compared to past processes that were open.

Mr. Genfi said one single investor, Franklin Templeton Investment Limited, an American global investment management organisation founded in 1947 purchased 95 percent of the bond issued.

He insisted that “a relational interest existed between the Minister of Finance and Mr Trevor G Trefgarne, who in a semi-annual report of the Franklin Templeton Investment Limited of December 31, 2016, is one of the Board of Directors of the organisation, while also being the Chairman of the Enterprise Group Limited.

“Enterprise Group Limited is a company partially owned by Data Bank Limited, a company in which the Finance Minister is known to have significant interest,” Mr Genfi said.

He also complained that Mr. Tevor G Trefgarne and the Minister of Finance had also been described as “great friends.”

But CHRAJ in the 140-page report after its investigations said “there was also no evidence before the Commission that there was a personal benefit to the Respondent or his private businesses and other relations.”

Other Findings

Although there was no evidence that Mr. Ofori-Atta benefited personally from the transaction, the Commission found breaches of the rules on the issuance of bonds.

On the basis of that, it gave several directives in the exercise of its powers under Article 287 (2) of the Constitution that provides that “The Commissioner for Human Rights and Administrative Justice or the Chief Justice as the case may be, may take such action as he considers appropriate in respect of the results of the investigation or the admission,” directed that the Minister ensure that all processes in the issuance of bonds by MoF and the Bank of Ghana (BOG) are complied with.

It also directed that the minister, as a matter of urgency, pass regulations, rules or guidelines to regulate the format of and criteria for the auctions and the procedures for participation, bidding, and allocation in auctions in relation to the issuance of securities in the domestic market.

CHRAJ further charged the minister take measures in preventing Primary Dealers who are also bookrunners/Transaction Advisors from gaining the unfair advantage because of their dual roles.

It urged the implementation of section 56 of the Public Financial Management Act, 921 of 2016 in the shortest possible time due to the imperative of Bonds becoming a feature of the country’s debt payment system and the appetite of investors.

It said section 56 (1) provided that, “The terms and conditions of all government borrowing shall be laid before Parliament and shall not come into operation unless the terms and conditions are approved by a resolution of Parliament in accordance with article 181 of the Constitution”.

“The issuance of bonds is a form of borrowing and therefore operationalising section 56 (2) of the PFM Act with standard terms and conditions for government borrowing through a legislative instrument or through a resolution of Parliament to enable greater transparency in all borrowings is long overdue,” CHRAJ stressed.

Observations

Among the 21-point findings in its decision, CHRAJ observed that Primary Dealers also doubled up as Bookrunners/Transaction advisors and that dual role gave them an undue advantage.

It also observed that the “Respondent is either a director, former director or shareholder, or beneficial owner, of several companies whose objects relate to the securities market sector. The companies include Databank and EGL. As such, Respondent’s interests in the growth and wellbeing of those companies, have the potential to conflict with the interests of the state in relation to the securities market such as the issuance of bonds.

It stated that “The Respondent has business partners and associates related to the securities industry where, according to the Respondent, he has been working for over thirty years. These business partners and associates include partners in Databank, Enterprise Group Limited, Ventures and Acquisitions Limited, as well as Keli Gadzekpo, Trevor Trefgarne and Angela Ofori Atta, also Respondent’s spouse.”

Click here to read the full report. 

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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post CHRAJ clears Ofori-Atta of Conflict of Interest in $2.25bn bond saga appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Mr. Genfi petitioned CHRAJ to investigate the bond on grounds that the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori Atta, had attempted to “promote a personal interest for himself, as well as family and friends, which interfered with the objective exercise of his duties.”

[contextly_sidebar id=”3G5PRLUReBOGWzsjRUiYFDteisNJcvAc”]A 17-paged letter from the Attorney General’s office, signed by the Deputy Attorney General, Godfred Dame, however rubbished these claims, insisting that “there is no evidence of any act or omission on the part of either the Ministry or the Minister supporting an allegation of participation in a business transaction or activity for the benefit of friends or family.”

It further clarified that “neither did the personal interests of either the Ministry of Finance or the Minister for Finance interfere with the performance of their duties and functions.”

“To the extent that the allegations made by the petitioner had the real tendency to negatively taint an otherwise highly successful financial exercise of great import by the Government of Ghana, we deem the petitioner’s allegations as very deplorable, since same are clearly anchored on blatant falsehoods and manifest unfamiliarity with the regulations and procedure for the issue of Government of Ghana Bonds. We pray for the petition to be dismissed as grossly unmeritorious and frivolous,” the letter said.

Read details of the letter here

Brongya Genfi in his petition made the following requests

Mr. Genfi also demanded that the following questions must be answered:

• Was a substantial portion of the bond purchased by Franklin Templeton Investments, if so, how much? • Is Trevor G. Trefgarne a Director of Franklin Templeton Investments?
• Is Trevor G. Trefgarne the Chairman/Director of Enterprise Group Ltd?
• Are Dr. Mrs. Angela Ofori-Atta, Mr. Keli Gadzekpo, Hon. Gloria Akuffo and Hon. Ken Ofori-Atta Directors of the Board of Enterprise Group Ltd.?
• If not, were they Directors of the Board in the immediate past?
• Does Databank Ltd. own part of Enterprise Group Ltd. or any of its affiliates?
• Does Hon. Ken Ofori-Atta have any shares or business interest in Databank Ltd. or did he have any shares or business interest in the immediate past? •
• Is Keli Gadzekpo a business partner of the Minister for Finance or was Keli Gadzekpo a business partner of the Minister for Finance immediately before the Minister was sworn in as Minister for Finance?
• Did Hon. Gloria Akuffo resign from the board of Enterprise Group Ltd. and, if so, was this before the commencement of the process of the bond issuance?
• Did Hon. Gloria Akuffo, as Attorney-General & Minister for Justice, have no knowledge of the bond arrangement and, if so, why not?
• Were the initial pricing guidelines of the Bond issued around 5:37pm on March 30, 2017, after normal working hours?
• Was the transaction opened around 9.00am on March 31, 2017, and closed around 4.20pm of the same day?
• Was the transaction opened before the announcement was made to the public? • Was the placement method used competitive and transparent or was it “cooked” for one single investor? • Did the Minister for Finance make full disclosure of his relational interest in the bond issuance either before or during the process?
• Did the Attorney-General make full disclosure of her relational interest in the bond issuance either before or during the process?
• Did the Minister for Finance adhere to the 1992 Constitution, the Code of Conduct for Public Officers of Ghana, CHRAJ’s guidelines on conflict of interest for Public Officers, and other relevant rules and laws pertaining to conflict of interest and issues of corruption?
• Should the Minister for Finance resign or be removed from office?
• Did the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice adhere to the 1992 Constitution, the Code of Conduct for Public Officers of Ghana, CHRAJ’s guidelines on conflict of interest for Public Officers, and other relevant rules and laws pertaining to conflict of interest and issues of corruption?
• Should the Attorney-General resign or be removed from office?

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By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @EfeAnsah

The post Dismiss Brogya Genfi’s petition on $ 2.25bn bond – Gov’t appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.