The vehicles which were originally brought into Ghana to be used by District Chief Executives across the country, have been under the mercy of the weather for the past 16 years because the then Kufuor government failed to distribute them to the various assemblies citing the absence of a written contract in the purchase of the vehicles.

Successive governments have also failed to reach an amicable settlement with the importers of the vehicles, African Automobile Company Limited.

[contextly_sidebar id=”EnLEITaMxKTboJrXB1rP4RK4f1sVThr1″]Speaking on Eyewitness News on Tuesday, Nii Lantey Vanderpuye, said the National Democratic Congress administration in their eight years tried on several occasions to take over the vehicles but was unsuccessful.

“I felt ashamed at the time I went to the Local Government Institute and saw these vehicles parked there. I felt sad for this country and I sincerely will believe that anybody culpable to have willfully caused financial loss to the state through the failure to allow the state to have access to these vehicles and to use them appropriately should be sanctioned.”

He lamented that, at the time, the matter was politicized such that it complicated the whole issue.

“This issue was politicized, became a partisan issue and we as such were not able to really exhaustively look at it; nationalistically, patriotically and with the lenses of national economy. The taxpayers money had been used and I would have said that if even the procedure for acquiring those vehicles were not properly followed, for the vehicles to stay there and rot aware while we will still pay for them, it’s better to be put to use and then whatever procedure which was breached, people who breached those procedures could be dealt with. But for people to deliberately decide that it will not happen was a problem.”

For MMDCEs/Sanitation exercise

He said the NDC government tried allow the newly created district assemblies to use the vehicles but it wasn’t successful.

Nii Lantey Vanderpuye also added that, the former Local Government Minister, Julius Debrah in 2012, also tried to get the vehicles to boost the national sanitation exercise, but also failed following the protracted legal tussle over the matter.

“As far back as 2013, there were attempts by Mills government to get the vehicles that were motorable, to be given out to some of our DCEs who at the time were having problems with their vehicles. The newly created district assemblies didn’t have equipment, among others. So the suggestion was that, why don’t we give them these vehicles but as at the time, because there had been a long legal tussle over the vehicles, it was difficult for anyone to use them.”

“I remember very well again that, after the 2012 election, when I became Deputy Minister, I remember Julius [Debrah] tried to get us these vehicles so that when we are embarking on the national sanitation exercise, we were trying to see if we could get these vehicles to the assemblies to facilitate and help them do their work because when we went there, some of the assemblies complained about lack of mobility. We tried again but we were not successful,” he added.

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Punish those responsible for 86 dormant gov’t vehicles – Nii Lantey appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The vehicles were originally brought into the country to be used by District Chief Executives.

But the then Kufuor government failed to distribute the vehicles to the various assemblies, citing the absence of a written contract in the purchase of the vehicles.

Governments thereafter failed to reach an amicable settlement with the importers of the vehicles, African Automobile Company Limited.

Speaking to Citi News, the Chairperson of the Local Government and Rural Development Committee of Parliament, Patricia Appiagyei, said a parliamentary enquiry is needed to bring closure to the matter.

She said because the issue borders on local governance, “it becomes an issue that we [Local Government and Rural Development Committee] should show great interest in and ensure that we deal with it and find solution to it because almost 10 years now, some vehicles have been deposited somewhere without any use and it is a real cost to the nation.”

“…Therefore, we will be very much interested into looking into this issue and find solutions to it. One other thing I want you to know is the fact that, I don’t know whether it’s gone through some legal process. Anything within the legal process is within the courts and what we cannot do is that once the issue is in the hands of legal personnel, we cannot do much about it unless the court decides towards how it ought to be done. Apart from that, we will recommend to government as to which line is supposed to be taken,” she added.

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By: Franklin Badu Jnr/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Parliament to probe how 86 vehicles were abandoned appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.