Akufo-Addo Nearly Got Ghana Duped -Omane Boamah

Omane Boamah Reveals NPP Overlord’s Love Letter In Support Of Deceitful Great Cape; And Demands Objective Media Reportage

Government has accused the 2016 flag bearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akufo-Addo, of conniving with Great Cape Company Limited to “hoodwink” the state to pay some judgment debt to the firm.

The ex-Attorney-General, had come across, as failing to do due diligence by competently investigating before ordering the erstwhile Mills government through a letter to settle a company that was clearly out to dupe the country.

Akufo-Addo, did this many years after leaving office.

Meanwhile, The Herald’s independent checks have revealed that two elements of the National Reform Party (NRP) Goosie Tanoh and Tweretwie Opoku as having some links with Great Cape Company Limited. It is not clear what their individual shares are in the company but what is clear was Mahama government’s commitment to battle the company despite being remotely connected to the governing party; the Reform Party was a breakaway party from the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC).

Again, it is not clear what inspired Mr. Akufo-Addo to write the letter demanding payment for the Great Cape Company Limited.

But speaking at the “Meet The Press” series in Accra, yesterday, Dr Edward Omane Boamah, Minister of Communication, said, the NPP had no right to accuse the Mahama administration of paying judgment debts when its flagbearer conspired with Great Cape to attempt to dupe the Ghanaian taxpayer.

The Minister of Communication, challenged the media especially Joy FM objective and evenhanded by delving into the facts surrounding the Great Cape Company Limited and Ghana National Petroleum Company (GNPC) drillship judgment debts issues, same way they have done with Alfred Agbesi Woyome’s GH¢51 million judgment debt.

Akufo-Addo, was also behind the GNPC case by failing as Attorney-General and Minister of Justice to represent Ghana in a UK High Court, despite having been trained in England as lawyer.

His absence led to the sale of Ghana’s drillship to defray a judgment debt, which Mr. Tsatsu Tsikata, has argued should not have been paid, had Ghana put up a proper legal representation to battle the French bank, Société Générale.

Dr Omane Boamah, told journalists that the company’s attempt to dupe the state arose “out of a dispute between Ghana National Petroleum Agency and Great Cape Company Limited”, explaining: “In 1978, the former contracted the latter to supply 200,000 tonnes of cement. Along the line, the contract was abrogated and full and final settlement paid according to a letter written by then-Finance Minister, Mr. Richard Kwame Peprah, and you find this in the judgment. Shockingly, the Great Cape Company Limited, brought a frivolous application to hoodwink the state and the taxpayer. Unfortunately, Nana Akufo-Addo, came to their aid.

“On 3rd October, 2011, three years after leaving office [as Attorney General] Nana Akufo-Addo wrote a letter to support the Great Cape Company in furtherance of its illegitimate claims on government and the taxpayer. He wrote: ‘It is disconcerting to find that public record keeping has fallen into such straits that the files on this matter cannot be found either in the Ministry of Justice or in the Ministry of Finance. Be that as it may, it will be unconscionable on the part of government if its poor record keeping is used to defeat legitimate claims of its creditors.’ The letter is available [but] Nana was certainly wrong. Great Cape Company did not have any legitimate claim to make. Great Cape Company Limited, on the contrary, was trying to hoodwink the state and the taxpayer and he unfortunately and incompetently fell for it.”

According to Dr Omane Boamah, “On 21 October 2016, just about a month ago in the judgment delivered by his Lordship, Eric Kyei Bafour, on this matter ably defended by Attorney General, Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong, His Lordship concludes: ‘On the whole, the plaintiff, who bore the burden of proof at the end of the trial, his claim remained unproved and unimpressive while the evidence of the defendants showed plaintiff had attempted to hoodwink them to make a further payment. In conclusion, plaintiff’s claim is dismissed in its entirety. I will exercise my discretion and award cost of GHS 50,000 in favour of the defendant.’ The judge says the plaintiff was trying to hoodwink the state. A former Attorney General, three years after leaving office, was writing in support of Great Cape Company that was trying to hoodwink the state.”

Dr Boamah quizzed: “How on earth did Nana Akufo-Addo, a former Attorney General and a member of the Ghana Bar Association, write to support the Great Cape Company Limited to hoodwink the state and the taxpayer?”
Dr. Omane-Boamah, described Nana Akufo-Addo and his running mate, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, as serial liars, and catalogued a series of “lies” which he said had been told by the two opposition politicians against the Mahama administration.

On December 9, 2014, he said, Nana Akufo-Addo “lied about the cost of the Kasoa Interchange and insisted it had been inflated,” when he delivered the Alhaji Aliu Mahama memorial lecture. “Not even facts to correct the obvious misinformation from an NPP – not NDC minority ranking Member of Parliament on roads and transport committee – could satisfy him. This is false.”

On October 19, 2015, he said Mr Akufo-Addo “lied about some $10m used by the government to print diaries. Once again this is false.”

On October 21, 2015, Dr Boamah said Mr Akufo-Addo “claimed at a gathering in Amsterdam that government and the Electoral Commission were scheming to rig the 2016 elections. He provided no proof, another falsehood.”

Again, on December 19, 2015, Dr Boamah said Mr Akufo-Addo “lied at an NPP delegates’ conference in Sunyani that all government projects had been awarded to enrich government officials. He provided no proof, another falsehood.”

On February 29, 2016, “he lied that the Ridge hospital project was inflated by $142million, yet another falsehood.”

According to Dr Boamah, “the lies” of Dr Bawumia, the former deputy governor of the central bank, “against this government are even more disingenuous – the case of the servant undoing the master.”

“On 25 March 2015, he lied at a lecture at the Central University College that the AfDB had suspended Ghana the previous month and we were still on suspension as of the time he was delivering the lecture. AfDB denied this claim, another falsehood.

“In November 2015, Dr Bawumia lied that the NDC government has borrowed $37billion in seven years. The illogical implications of his claim were quickly exposed. He then quickly shifted the goal post and tried to explain – shall I say rationalise – that he was talking about the value of money borrowed when our debt has never been calculated through the fraudulent manipulation of figures that he attempted to employ that day,” Dr. Boamah added.