Selormy's woes deepen

The woes of Victor Selormy, former Deputy Finance Minister currently serving an eight-year jail term at Nsawam Prison are not yet over. Indications are that jailed Minster will soon be arraigned before court together with Mr Dan Abodakpi, former Deputy Minister of Trade for their alleged involvement in a contract dubbed “the Science and Technology Park/Valley” which is similar to the Silicon Valley in the USA.

A special government investigation term has revealed that the services the former two Ministers purported to have paid for which involved the transfer of 400,000 US dollars or ?2.73 billion to Dr Owusu Buadu in Taxes, USA, in the Court Computerization Project that sent Mr Selormey to prison had already been provided for under the Gateway Project of the Ministry of Trade and Industry.

Investigation also pointed to the fact that the Gateway Secretariat has not knowledge of the contracting project nor was it privy to any report on it. Consequently the two former Deputy Ministers have been charged with conspiracy to defraud and fraud and causing financial loss to the state, according to the special investigation team.

However, a source at the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), which confirmed the story, said preparations were underway to send the former Minister to court. “The Evening News” in its 20 August, 2001 edition, published that the two former Ministers, Mr Selormey and Mr Abodakpi had transferred 400,000 US dollars or ?2.73 billion to Dr Owusu Buadu for the establishment of what was described as a Science and Technology Park/Valley, similar to the Silicon Valley in the USA.

It said Abodakpi and Selormey diverted project funds meant for on-lending to companies involved in Non-Traditional Exports to pay for consultancy services. Ironically, the services they purported to have paid for had already been provided for under the Gateway Project o the Ministry of Trade and Industry.

The special investigation team concluded that the use of all project funds to pay for consultancy services amounted to a misprocurement. “It is clearly evident that “the contract” submitted is tainted with fraud as it was not witnessed by the Legal Officers at the Trade Ministry or the Attorney-General’s Department for a contract of this magnitude; the investigations revealed.

According to the investigation team, the payments of the contract were made in four separate transfers very close to the 2000 election. The amounts, the team said, were transferred on the authorization by Selormey to Fred Buadu’s local bank account number 1101015760111, through ECOBANK Ghana Limited on 18 October, 3 November 15 December and 29,December 2002.

According to the investigation, the transfer of ?250 million, ?300 million, ?115.6 million and ?2.066 million, had no official correspondence whatever between Dr Buadu and either the Ministry of Finance or Ministry of Trade and Industry.

"What was purported to be a contract was signed by both Abodakpi and the Consultant but there was no witness to the contract. Also, the contract document was not initialled page by page as required" it revealed.

The contract, it said, lacked the detailed information required in a feasibility study, such as market analysis, financial projections and viability of the Science and Technology Community project and risk analysis of the project. Among the conclusions by the team and highly irregular use of Taxes and A and M university letterhead to bill for 300,000 US dollars when University was pot a party to the contract.