ORAL Brigade to picket at finance ministry over SML contract, national ambulance deal

Advocacy group, Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL) Brigade, has announced that it will be picketing at the Ministry of Finance on September 4, 2024, over the Strategic Mobilisation Limited (SML) contract and the national ambulance deal.

The group is demanding that the government open an investigation into the Strategic Mobilisation Limited contract and the national ambulance deal, myjoyonline.com reports.

According to the Brigade, the SML and the national ambulance deals saw a lot of corruption, and the people responsible for these acts must be held accountable.

Speaking to the media on Thursday, August 29, 2024, the Convenor of the group, Osman Ayariga, accused the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) of signing the SML deal without securing the necessary approvals from the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) and Parliament.

He pointed out that the report by KPMG on the SML made clear these anomalies, and as such, the person(s) responsible for them must not go unpunished.

He said the national ambulance deal was also done without adhering to the laid-down procurement procedures.

Osman Ayariga added that the picketing at the Ministry of Finance is to push for transparency and accountability on the two deals.

"On the 4th of September 2024, the ORAL Brigade will be assembling at the Ministry of Finance to voice our demands and ensure that our concerns are heard. Our purpose is to urge the Minister of Finance to take immediate action to investigate these matters thoroughly, halt any questionable payments, and recover funds where necessary.

"We believe that this picketing is vital to restore public confidence in our financial management systems and to reinforce the principle that public resources must be managed with the highest levels of integrity and transparency. This is just the first of many planned protests by the nation-conscious ORAL Brigade aimed at demanding accountability in public financial management," he said.

BAI/ ADG

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