GRA-SML deal: Ofori-Atta, others must be prosecuted for causing financial loss – Martin Kpebu

Renowned private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu has called for the prosecution of the immediate past Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, and others involved in the signing of the revenue assurance contract between the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Ltd (SML).

According to him, portions of the audit report by KPMG on the revenue assurance deal indicate that the state lost money, and all persons culpable should be dealt with within the remits of the law, including Ofori-Atta, who is now the Senior Presidential Advisor and Special Envoy for International Finance and Private Sector Investments.

He emphasized that there is sufficient evidence in KPMG’s report that the state incurred losses.

“I have seen parts of the [audit] report which states that SML didn’t deliver, so we need to quantify how much we lost and hold Ofori-Atta and the other officials involved accountable for this loss,” he is quoted to have said in an interview with JoyNews.

Kpebu, according to myjoyonline.com, also called for the immediate termination of the revenue assurance contract between GRA and SML, stating that the state can terminate the contract because SML failed to honour its responsibilities in the deal.

“We need to terminate this agreement because, in law, when an agreement is void, public agencies shouldn’t pay money,” he asserted.

Meanwhile, IMANI Africa Vice President, Bright Simons, has noted major findings that made the deal even worse than had been earlier reported based on the documentary that first reported on the matter.

In a series of posts on social media, Simons listed bombshell findings from his initial analysis of the report:

"The famous KPMG report on SML is finally been released. As suspected, Ghana's President's earlier summary has major gaps," he noted before listing the findings:

a. SML received close to 1.5 Billion cedis in payments, not 1 Billion as per the presidency.

b. KPMG saw the impact of taxes on increasing revenue, which clearly wasn't SML’s work.

c. SML’s flowmeters never worked as specified throughout the contract period.

d. SML refused to pay taxes on its fees from GRA.

e. The Ministry of Finance deliberately refused to conduct a Value for Money evaluation.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo released an over 300-page audit report on contracts and transactions between GRA and SML.

After initially deciding not to release the full audit report by KPMG, the Office of the President announced in a statement dated May 22 that the report had been released despite Right To Information (RTI) exemptions raised earlier.

On April 24, 2024, President Akufo-Addo received a request from the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), under section 18 of the Right to Information Act, 2019 (Act 989) (RTI Act), for a copy of the KPMG report.

The President had commissioned KPMG on December 29, 2023, to undertake an inquiry to gain a clear understanding of the matters in controversy and to be properly advised in taking the necessary decisions.

In justifying the earlier refusal to release the report, the presidency stated that the KPMG report comprised opinions, advice, deliberations, and recommendations that are integral to the President’s deliberative process and, therefore, qualifies as exempt information under section 5 (1) (a) and (b) (i) of the RTI Act.

At the time, a detailed press statement outlining KPMG’s findings and recommendations, as well as the president's directives to the Ministry of Finance and GRA, was published.

BAI/ ADG

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