Deputy Minister of Information, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, says evidence available in the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC)�s business transaction, with a phony UK-based Company, Sound Broadcast Services (SBS), for the supply of three Frequency Modulation (FM) transmitters valued at �24,516.65, shows that the deal was made by way of the internet, without any physical intermediary.
In an interview on �Kokrokoo�, Mr. Okudzeto said at a meeting with the Board of GBC, it came out that �all the documents received during the transaction� was via e-mails.
��the documents given to us are all in the form of e-mails�there has been no action on their (SBS) commitment�it appears that as soon as they got the money from GBC, they were no longer communicating with GBC� he added.
The Director-General of the GBC, Mr William Ampem Darko, is said to have paid the amount to SBS for the supply of the three FM transmitters to beef up the operations of GBC FM stations at Amedzofe and Tamale.
But the directors of SBS, upon receipt of the money, declared the company bankrupt and suggested that the �24,516.65 it had received from GBC be considered a dash.
They also disappeared soon after receiving the amount.
According to Okudzeto Ablakwa, there was no representative of the UK-based Company in Ghana during the transaction period, adding that it was GBC�s first business arrangement with them.
��All the e-mails we have, are direct communication between the UK company and then the GBC, there was no intermediary, at least not documented�in all the documentation there was no middle man,�
The Deputy Minister of Information further indicated that though details of the transaction are sketchy, the government had asked National Security to team up with INTERPOL to trace the directors of SBS.
�The ministry has forwarded everything to the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice for advice. The National Security Council (NSC) has been asked to possibly link up with Interpol to investigate the incident and retrieve the money...As at now, details are still not clear� all the documents�have been given to the NSC, to as it were, get in touch with their counterparts in the UK to find out how they can collaborate to ensure that at least they trace exactly who retrieved the money, how the money got to the person and how the money can be refunded,� he told Kwami Sefa Kayi during the interview on PEACEFM.
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