EC Boss impeachment: Allegations empty – Kweku Baako

Editor-in-chief of the New Crusading Guide Newspaper Abdul Malik Kweku Baako has described the allegations levelled against the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission seeking for her impeachment as ‘incompetent’ and lacking substance.

According to him, whether the Chief Justice establishes a prima facie case, it’s crucial for investigations to be conducted into the charges for the sake of the EC’s corporate integrity and its commissioners because of the role it plays and its nature.

A 27-point petition in which allegations of misbehaviour, mismanagement have been made against the Electoral Commission Chairperson, Mrs Charlotte Osei has been submitted to President Akufo Addo asking for the former’s removal from office.

The petition, signed by private legal practitioner, Maxwell Opoku Agyemang who is counsel for the petitioners stated among others, that the Chairperson of the Commission in many instances breached the Procurement Law in procuring goods and services for the Commission.

She was also alleged to have abrogated an existing contract with Super Tech Ltd. (STL), unilaterally renegotiating and re-awarding the contract at new sum of $21,999,592 without serious regard to the tender processes.

“The chairperson, Mrs Charlotte Osei unilaterally awarded a contract of about $25,000 to a South African company Quazar Limited to change and re-develop the Commission’s Logo under the guise of rebranding without going through tender contrary to the Public Procurement Act,” point 26 of the petition read.

But commenting on the matter on Joy FM’s News File Show Saturday, Abdul Malik Kweku Baako stated that he suspects the concerned workers have no access to official records as their claims are verifiable.

He was confident that if they did, they’ll not make this claim since the original contract with the STL was signed in violation of the Public Procurement Act which they are using to make their case.

“This is documented, indeed I have sighted email correspondence from those who signed that contract to the Chairperson admitting lack of knowledge of the rules of procurement on basis of which the Chairperson said then this contract cannot go through. And a committee was set up to review it and renegotiate I have all the minutes inluding the documents, anybody who gets them wont waste his time on some of these matters eventhough they ought to be subjected to verification and investigations.

“Indeed it is not true that the contract was reviewed to the level of $21m, it is $7.2m, these are simple things, you do you checks if you decide to go upstairs to a President and a Chief Justice or to EOCO…do your checks and make sure that what you’re presenting is incontestible and credible and so that’s the situation. Same way with the contract for the Headquarters, the documents, tender, evaluation committee is here…documented in official records, not something somebody has fabricated. They’re ECs own records, you have minutes with human beings having sat in meetings having recorded. And you see somebody will say there he goes becuase she’s his blood relative and so when I see the truth I should be disarmed or disabled from speaking it,” Baako said.

EC boss debunks allegations levelled against her by unfazed staff by GhanaWeb on Scribd