{"id":310585,"date":"2017-04-14T10:15:45","date_gmt":"2017-04-14T10:15:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/citifmonline.com\/?p=310585"},"modified":"2017-04-14T10:15:45","modified_gmt":"2017-04-14T10:15:45","slug":"addison-committee-in-conflict-of-interest-position-manteaw","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2017\/04\/addison-committee-in-conflict-of-interest-position-manteaw\/","title":{"rendered":"Addison committee in conflict of interest position \u2013 Manteaw"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Civil Society Platform on Oil and Gas (CSPOG), has said that the Addison committee constituted to investigate the AMERI deal signed by the erstwhile NDC government, is in a serious conflict of interest position following news that the committee\u2019s work in Dubai was sponsored by AMERI.<\/p>\n

The Platform in a statement signed by its Chairman, Steve Manteaw, expressed regret that most state officials were putting the credibility of their work in question by getting involved in shady engagements.<\/p>\n

[contextly_sidebar id=”FRL7keicebrmxWCkMnbVfLQs7baej6eB”]It said, the worrying trend was an affront to the fight against corruption, as state officers are indirectly influenced not to execute their mandate effectively by being sponsored by bodies they investigate to carry out the task.<\/p>\n

It added that \u201cIt also constitutes a big blow to the integrity of the personnel and institutions involved, as well as the credibility of their work.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Minister for Information, Mustapha Hamid, reportedly admitted that the Addison Committee\u2019s trip to Dubai to investigate the deal, including hotel accommodation and air tickets were paid for by AMERI.<\/p>\n

This has raised many questions about the objectivity of the report it produced, which accused the erstwhile government of not doing due diligence in signing the contract, and therefore costing Ghana some extra $150 million.<\/p>\n

The NDC minority in parliament, has since served notice it will petition CHRAJ<\/a><\/strong><\/span> to look into the matter over a possibility of the Commttee being in a conflict of interest position.<\/p>\n

According to CSPOG, any such investigation by CHRAJ must lead to the prescription and adoption of guidelines by which public office holders, institutions, and investigative committees would be held to.<\/p>\n

Read CSPOG\u2019s full statement below:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hon. Mustapha Hamid\u2019s admission that AMERI funded the Addison Committee\u2019s trip to Dubai as part of investigations into the AMERI deal has raised serious conflict of interest issues. Media reports alleged that AMERI paid for the hotel and air tickets of the committee members to Dubai to aid the Addison committee\u2019s investigation.<\/p>\n

This situation has led to people, especially the NDC to question the credibility of the report issued by the committee. According to Dr.\u00a0 Kwabena Donkor, the Former Minister Of Power under whom the agreement was signed, AMERI\u2019s sponsorship of the Committee compromises the integrity of Philip Addison and his committee to conduct any investigation whatsoever into the deal.<\/p>\n

While the Civil Society Platform on Oil and Gas (CSPOG) welcomes the public debate that has ensued following the revelation, it wishes to point out that, it has, unfortunately, become the norm, rather than the exception in Ghana for state official and entities to place themselves in positions of conflicting interests.<\/p>\n

In 2015 before the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) was signed between state-owned distributor, Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and Karpowership Ghana Company Limited, members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Mines And Energy, who were responsible for ensuring due diligence before the contract was signed by the government, and who was saddled with responsibility for ratifying the transaction were sponsored on a trip to Turkey by the very company (Karpowership) that the agreement was to be signed with.<\/p>\n

Karpowership paid their airfares, hotel expenses and per diems.<\/p>\n

There have also been several cases of government officials who are supposed to have oversight responsibilities over companies and institutions being sponsored by these same companies on trips abroad, serving on boards of these companies or involved with the company for personal gains.<\/p>\n

The trend is indeed worrying, as it constitutes a huge impediment to the fight against corruption.<\/p>\n

It also constitutes a big blow to the integrity of the personnel and institutions involved, as well as the credibility of their work.<\/p>\n

CSPOG recalls that the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) embarked on a mission to develop conflict of interest guidelines for public office holders during the reign of President Kufuor, but wonders what became of the exercise.<\/p>\n

Now that CHRAJ is being called upon by the NDC to investigate the Philip Addison Committee, CSPOG takes the opportunity to urge that, any such investigation must lead to the prescription and adoption of guidelines by which public office holders, institutions, and investigative committees would be held to.<\/p>\n

As part of remedial measures, the state must be required at all times, to make funding available to sponsor activities of committees set up to investigate cases of corruption, as in the case of AMERI, to prevent creating avenues for possible bribery which leads to loss of credibility of the committees\u2019 reports.<\/p>\n

If the government cannot ensure adequate funding is available to sponsor investigations, then they shouldn\u2019t set committees up in the first place.<\/p>\n

Signed<\/p>\n

Steve Manteaw<\/p>\n

(Chairman, CSPOG)<\/p>\n

–<\/p>\n

By: Jonas Nyabor\/citifmonline.com\/Ghana<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Civil Society Platform on Oil and Gas (CSPOG), has said that the Addison committee constituted to investigate the AMERI deal signed by the erstwhile NDC government, is in a serious conflict of interest position following news that the committee\u2019s work in Dubai was sponsored by AMERI. The Platform in a statement signed by its […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10,11],"tags":[1234,6149,3,85],"yoast_head":"\nAddison committee in conflict of interest position \u2013 Manteaw - Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. 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