Trade and Industry Minister, Ekow Spio-Garbrah’s comment that some “evil politicians” are trying to “rape the country’s treasury” in the wake of the Bankswitch judgement debt saga, has raised eyebrows.
The cancelation of the IT firm – Bankswitch’s – contract that gave rise to about GH¢197 million judgement debt continues to generate heated political debate on how some government officials take unilateral decisions.
Mr Spio-Garbrah on Wednesday, June 3, 2015, wrote to five Destination Inspection Companies (DICs) to contribute $35 million each towards the settlement of the Bankswitch judgement debt.
$175m Versus GH¢197m
By computation, the government will receive $175 million from the five DICs, should they be able to afford the amount to settle GH¢197 million.
With the current exchange rate of cedi to dollar at interbank rate as at Friday pegged at GH¢4.27, the NDC government will be raking in GH¢841million, far in excess of the GH¢197 million judgement debt to Bankswitch.
NPP MPs
The ministry of trade and industry (MoTI) in an attempt to parry its critics, issued a statement and said members of the erstwhile New Patriotic Party (NPP) government who negotiated and signed the Bankswitch contract, some current NPP MPs, their associates in civil society and friends in the media “who wish Ghana harm can distort MoTI’s action and pretend it is some kind of bribe or scandal.”
The statement said, “However, when it is understood that MoTI is rather trying to help save the people of Ghana from an evil plot by some businessmen and politicians to rape the country’s Treasury, then right-thinking men and women should sit up.”
Mills Impressed
DAILY GUIDE learnt that upon assumption of office, powerful NDC personalities wanted the Bankswitch contract canceled but after heads of the various revenue agencies demonstrated to President J.E.A. Mills that it was the right step to take, the late Professor agreed.
Reports say even Fifi Fiavi Kwetey, then deputy minister of finance in-charge of revenue mobilization, was impressed with the capabilities of Bankswitch to help rake in more revenue from the ports.
President Mills is reported to have then ordered Bankswitch to continue working for at least three months for the government to assess the firm’s performance, but the then trade minister, Hannah Tetteh, allegedly went ahead to call for the cancelation of the contract a few days later, to the chagrin of President Mills.
Bankswitch Shortchanged
Feeling shortchanged after setting up its monitoring centre, Bankswitch in 2014 filed a writ at the Permanent Court of Arbitration, in The Hague, The Netherlands, after the cancellation of the contract signed in 2007, to help government mobilize revenue at the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).
Bankswitch demanded the payment of GH¢853 million in damages for the cancellation and according to the rules of the court, each party to the case was to appoint an arbiter.
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