Mahama wild over guinea fowls

President John Mahama has directed the Minister in-Charge of Development Authorities at the Presidency, Alhaji Mustapha Ahmed, to furnish the Chief of Staff with a comprehensive report on the GH¢47m (¢470billion) Guinea fowl and afforestation projects within two weeks.

The Asongtaba guinea fowl project has so far gulped GH¢15million (¢150billion) while GH¢32million (¢320billion) has been spent on the afforestation project, with no trace of the trees.

According to a statement issued from the Presidency and signed by Dr Raymond A. Atuguba, Executive Secretary to the President, the report would be compiled in consultation with the Savanna Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) Board in order to dispel speculations about the controversial projects, sited in the Northern part of the country.

The directive came after a civil society group calling itself Transparency and Accountability Forum (TAF) challenged President Mahama to come clean on his relationship with the AGAAMS Group of Companies, whose subsidiaries are Rlg and Asongtaba, the company liaising with SADA for the multi-million Ghana cedi guinea fowl and afforestation projects in the SADA operating area.

The statement from the Presidency was in reaction to a DAILY GUIDE report on the allegations raised by TAF linking President Mahama to the AGAAMS Group.

According to the civil society group, there is more to the preferential treatment the AGAAMS group is receiving from the NDC government, considering the allocation of juicy projects to the company, coupled with other government contracts to it.

However President Mahama, in the statement issued on Sunday, denied the group’s allegations that he owns shares in the AGAAMS Group or is in some type of business partnership with the Group.

“This is to clarify that President John Dramani Mahama has no personal or business interest in AGAAMS Group of Companies,” the statement said, adding that “the Chief of Staff (Prosper Douglas Bani) has already directed the Minister at the Presidency in-Charge of Development Authorities to, in consultation with the Savanna Accelerated Development Authority (SADA) Board, present a report on the projects that were the subject matter of the said publication”.