Better Ghana Dragged To EOCO

A few days after their extensive reaction to allegations of impropriety against them, the management of the Better Ghana Management Services Limited (BGMSL), a subsidiary of the Zoomlion grouping, has been dragged to the Economic And Organised Crime Office (EOCO). Leading the charge is one of the country�s latest civil society groupings, Mass Action Committee (MAC), whose conveners Atik Mohammed, Ernest Smith, Yakubu Mohammed Haruna, Samuel Essel and Benjamim Darko Asante are unhappy about what in their estimation are instances of impropriety dogging the arrangement. The petitioners claim the deliberate actions and inactions of the Minister of Youth and Sports, Clement Kofi Humado made it possible for BGMSL to perpetrate acts of fraud on the Republic. �There is no gainsaying that Clause 5 of the Agreement titled EVENTS OF DEFAULT makes it possible for the Ministry of Youth and Sports to terminate the Agreement with BGMSL subsequent to unsatisfactory performance or inability of the latter to meet its obligations within the specified time periods according to the agreement.� Calls and recommendations, they said, were made by the then National Coordinator of the NYEP to the Minister for the termination of the agreement following several breaches and disappointment by BGMSL in respect of their obligations calls, which they said were never heeded. On why the seeming actions of the BGMSL have gone unchecked and unanswered for a long time, they stated that is because of �probable official complicity.� Continuing, they stated, �in view of the above, we are humbly requesting the noble outfit of the Economic and Organized Crime Office to investigate the circumstances that led to the acceptance of BGMSL�s so Management Service Proposal.� MAC demanded that EOCO investigate what informed the consideration of GHS250.00 as management service fee- an arrangement that would see BGMSL take more money than the beneficiaries whichever way it is looked at. They are also demanding answers as to why BGMSL does not pay beneficiaries on time as required by the Agreement and why contributions to beneficiaries� Provident Fund are not made by BGMSL and where those monies go? �Why did BGMSL refuse to do the head count of beneficiaries to streamline the number.� MAC wants EOCO to investigate Mr. Clement Kofi Humado and other authorities directly involved in the implementation of the agreement to find out why he/they refused to terminate the agreement after BGMSL showed palpable inability to live up to its obligations.� They are asking for the prosecution of anybody or body of persons and institution(s) found culpable in perpetrating fraud and like crimes against the Republic of Ghana in the signing and execution of the Agreement.� As a pressure group, MAC seeks to contribute to the enhancement of good governance and national development through the promotion of institutional efficiency to ensure the achievement of value for money in all government or state investments including those in the nature of Public Private Partnerships according to a press release on the petition lodged with EOCO. The signatories to the BGMSL deal, according to MAC, included the then Minister of Youth and Sports Clement Kofi Humado, the then National Coordinator of NYEP, Abuga Pele and Beatrice Amponsah, General Manager of BGMSL. The government of Ghana, in October 2006, as a response to the alarming growth of youth unemployment in the country MAC, introduced the National Youth Employment Programme. The programme began with nine modules including the Health Extension Workers, Community Education and Teaching Assistants and Paid Internship modules.� Beneficiaries of these modules mentioned supra, they added, �were to be paid monthly allowances and same done directly by the Programme through its own structures. Clause 1 requires BGMSL to, among others, assist its client (the Republic of Ghana acting through the Ministry of Youth and Sports) in the implementation and management of the Community Education and Teaching Assistants Module numbering about twenty three thousand beneficiaries, Health Extension Workers Module numbering about twenty five thousand personnel.� They stated that �BGMSL has since the consummation of this agreement, acted in a manner that breaches the agreement and thus resulted in huge sums of money being lost or unaccounted for.