My wife’s GHC100.2m streetlight contract not sole sourced - Kennedy Agyapong

Controversial NPP Member of Parliament for Assin Central Honourable Kennedy Agyapong has gone all out in defense of his wife’s alleged 100,260,000 million cedis sole-sourced contract from the Energy Ministry, clarifying that the said contract was rather on restrictive tendering; MYNEWSGH.com can confirm.

Mr Ken Agyapong indicated that the Energy Ministry has consequently sent him a letter of apology for the mishap on their website, which labeled the said contract to Mrs Stella Wilson Agyapong’s company as sole sourcing when it was not.

“The website guys are diabolic. They want to sabotage our work. They have been taken off that contract. Why do you say that it is sole sourcing when it is not. The contract to my wife is restricted tendering”, he defended.

Speaking on AdomTV’s Badwam on MultiTV, the outspoken lawmaker said in the first place, there was nothing wrong with the award of the contract to his wife on restrictive tendering and she had proven she could carry out the contract as government didn’t have to pay her mobilization fees. He revealed that she has so far delivered 50% of the contract without any mobilization from government, contrary to the norm previously when contractors take mobilization before working.

He said there was urgency which necessitated the restrictive tendering, revealing that Vice President Bawumia needed streetlights for some areas in the Northern Region but upon checking the warehouse of the Ministry where records showed there were streetlights in stock, it turned out the previous NDC government had brought in empty containers and over 4000 streetlights could not be found.

Speaking on the show with NDC’s Felix Kwakye, he justified the contract:

“The time my wife opened the company, you minister (Felix Kwakye) you were still in school. She opened her company in 2001. And my wife’s contract was not on sole sourcing, it was restrictive tendering. I am a genuine person. We have saved the nation a lot of money”, he said.

“You are talking about capacity. My wife has capacity to do it and she has delivered 50% without mobilization. The prices were lower. Go and check. She has done it before. She has the financial capability because I am there” he said.

The contract awarded to Mrs Stella Wilson Agyapong’s Imperial World Ventures is worth GH¢100,260,000 through restrictive tendering by the Ministry of Energy to supply 150W LED streetlights. Restrictive tendering of a contract is subject to approval by the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) for the purchase of urgently needed products. There are other reasons that could necessitate it.

But speaking on the same show, Mr Felix Kwakye Ofosu, former Deputy Communication Minister said Mr Ken Agyapong might have gone to “make noise” in the ears of the Energy Minister, just as he is doing to the military high command over recruitment, for which reason the Energy Ministry gave out the said contract on restrictive tendering to Mrs Agyapong without opening it up for bidding.

He said the contract should have gone for tender, advertised and bids accepted from various companies with the best bid chosen to ensure there was strict value for money in the procurement.

“If it was someone else, you Kennedy Agyapong will come here and say the person is a thief”, he point out.

Mr Ken Agyapong has built a reputation for himself as someone who speaks his mind freely, and a self-styled whistleblower on shady deals by governments, whether it is his own government or an opposition.

He has previously accused some persons at the presidency of taking $20,000 before granting access to the President.

He also accused Prof Ken Attafuah, Executive Director of the National Identification Authority and Ursula Owusu Ekuful, Minister of Communication of some impropriety in the award of a Multi-million dollar contract for the national ID project- all claims he had no evidence to back.