[ 2017-05-23 ]

helicopter

Three (3) Ghana Gas helicopters missing
Three helicopters costing a hundred and fifty
million dollars ($ 150 million) that were to be
purchased for Ghana Gas Company cannot be traced,
investigations have shown.

The three helicopters costing $ 50 million each,
Dr Steve Manteaw of the Public Interest and
Accountability Committee alleged are missing from
Atuabo, the site of the Ghana Gas company.

“The three helicopters that were bought for $
150 million are nowhere to be found at the
site…I have asked about the helicopters but
there are no answers forth coming…,” he said
on Adom FM’s Morning Show, ‘Dwaso Nsem’ on
Tuesday.

According to him, the leadership of Ghana Gas in
Atuabo are surprised about the purchasing of the
three (3) helicopters for the project as according
to them, there is no helipad for the helicopters.

His revelation was corroborated by revelations
from the Monitoring and Evaluation Minister, Dr
Anthony Akoto Osei that four out of seven
helicopters which were to be purchased for the
project has broken down.

The four, he said were initially purchased at the
cost of 100 million dollars for the project.

These four (4) helicopters, he said could have
been bought for eight (8) million dollars each
instead of the $ 25 million each spent on the
purchase of the four.

“The four (4) could have just cost the nation $
32 million and not $ 100 million, go to the
Americas and we would get them for less instead of
purchasing them at that expensive cost from
China…,” he said.

Dr Anthony Akoto Osei who was at the time the
Minority Spokesperson on Finance said Ghana
acquired a loan from the Chinese Development Bank
to purchase the helicopters.

Ironically, the four which were commissioned by
President John Mahama in September 2015 have all
broken down.

Additional loan facility, he said was sought from
China to purchase the other three (3) helicopters
for the project.

And these helicopters, Dr Steve Manteaw said
cannot be traced and hence urged that persons who
were mandated to ensure its procurement ought to
be brought to book.

Cost of Ghana Gas Project and payment of taxes

The actual cost of the Ghana project which started
in 2012, Dr Steve Manteaw said is still unknown as
the $ 850 million which was initially earmarked
for the project was increased.

The loan for the project, Monitoring and
Evaluation Minister, Dr Anthony Akoto-Osei
emphasized was not presented to Parliament despite
his insistence and hence said he would demand of
the Energy Minister to appear before Parliament
and answer questions about the project.

“Fortunately, the main characters in the Ghana
Gas Project are still around and we can call them
to come and clarify issues for us…I will demand
in Parliament that they come and clarify issues on
the award of contracts and others…,” he
added.

At the start of project, Dr Manteaw said he went
to the offices of the Ghana Revenue Authority
(GRA) in search of tax file of Cinopec but
couldn’t be traced both in Accra and the Western
Region.

Research, he said showed that the company was
given tax concession by Ghana Gas; an action which
was against the Constitution as Parliament is the
only body that can waive tax for foreign
companies.

Interestingly, it was in 2016 that the finance
ministry brought the tax file demanding that
Cinopec should be exempted from tax.

Diligence on his part, he said led to Ghana
retrieving as much as 15 million Ghana cedis in
tax from Cinopec Gas Company.

Source - adomonline.com

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