{"id":314728,"date":"2017-04-28T15:53:46","date_gmt":"2017-04-28T15:53:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/citifmonline.com\/?p=314728"},"modified":"2017-04-28T15:53:46","modified_gmt":"2017-04-28T15:53:46","slug":"we-didnt-know-about-any-cocaine-tema-port-management","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2017\/04\/we-didnt-know-about-any-cocaine-tema-port-management\/","title":{"rendered":"We didn’t know about any cocaine \u00a0\u2013 Tema Port management"},"content":{"rendered":"

It seems the managers of the Tema Port were not informed about the containers within their domain that allegedly had\u00a0cocaine<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>concealed in them.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The Finder Newspaper on Friday reported that, 500 kilograms of cocaine worth about $30 million dollars had disappeared from the Port under mysterious circumstances.<\/p>\n

But the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Tema Port, Juana Adda, told Citi News<\/strong> that they were only told by the Joint Port Control Unit (JPCU) that the containers were carrying rice.<\/p>\n

[contextly_sidebar id=”zqCLNnSDCjzwQOOdA5LR6BShxzuymWVp”]\u201cYes indeed, the said containers were delivered to Depot 10 last year around November\/December 2016, the joint Port control unit wrote to [Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority] GPHA, requesting the authority to prompt them when the said containers were due to be sent to the Golden Jubilee. In other words, the said containers should not move out of the terminal without their knowledge.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe unit further requested that, the said boxes would have to go through scanning before they are conveyed to the Golden Jubilee Terminal (GJP). The letter to GPHA did not state the reason for that directive. The letter did not indicate that cocaine was concealed in one of the containers,\u201d she told Citi News<\/strong> on Friday.<\/p>\n

The PRO explained that, the importer of the rice in February 2017, wrote a letter to the Customs Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) requesting to send samples to the lab for testing which she said was approved by CEPS.<\/p>\n

\u201cFollowing Customs approval, GPHA moved one of the containers to the state warehouse,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

When asked whether Tema Port alerted the Joint Control Team about the development, Madam Adda explained that \u201cCustoms [CEPS] is part of the Joint Control Unit and whatever sampling would be done, NACOB is a member of the committee so if it has to do with sampling all of them would be part.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe that when they asked us to move the container, we complied with their directive. It was the duty of CEPS to also inform other members of the team that indeed this was happening. NACOB and Customs under these circumstances would have worked together,\u201d she noted.<\/p>\n

Why wasn\u2019t there 24-hour surveillance? <\/strong><\/p>\n

She further blamed NACOB for the missing cocaine if indeed there was any, since according to her, the board could have mounted a\u00a024-hour surveillance on the containers.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf NACOB knew that cocaine has been concealed in one of the containers, the onus was on them to have taken over and mounted a 24-hour surveillance until such time that the importer was ready to clear. Maybe they could have hinted us that there was cocaine in this container and that is why we are doing this,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

No cocaine missing \u2013 CEPS Tema Port commander<\/strong><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the Sector Commander of CEPS, of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), at the Tema Port, Confidence Nyadzi, has also dismissed claims that some cocaine had disappeared<\/strong><\/a><\/span> from the Port.<\/p>\n

According to him, thorough investigations conducted by the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), Narcotics Control Board (NACOB), the Ministry of Interior and other sector institutions, revealed that no container with cocaine had been detained at the Port.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can tell you that there is no truth in that reportage. I know that this matter has been dealt with at the office of the Minister of Interior and at that meeting was the commissioner of customs, the ex-commissioner, Mr. John Vianney, myself, NACOB and the relevant stakeholders. We looked at all the issues involved, as to whether there was a cocaine missing or not, I don\u2019t think anybody can tell you that. And I\u2019m telling you that the report is misleading. There was no cocaine in Tema Port in anybody\u2019s custody which got missing,\u201d\u00a0Mr Nyadzi insisted.<\/p>\n

–<\/p>\n

By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey\/citifmonline.com\/Ghana
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