TMA buys one teacher's table for ? 680,000

The Tema Municipal Assembly (TMA) bought one teachers' table at ?680,000; teachers chair at ? 650,000 and dual desk at ? 400,000, a Ghana News Agency investigations have revealed.

These prices were more than double those of similar pieces of furniture displayed at a number of showrooms in Tema that were priced at between ? 300,000 and ?350,000 for a teacher's table; ? 250,000 and ? 300,000 for a teacher's chair and ?200,000 and ?250,000 for a dual desk.

The TMA bought the set of furniture for a new Junior Secondary School (JSS) at Zenu, near Ashaiman on June 12,2002.

In January this year TMA donated a number of items to the TDC Magistrates' Court to improve the conditions there. The items which cost ?90 million cedis, were: an air conditioner (window type), a tabletop fridge, five fluorescent tubes, 15 benches with back rest (to seat for persons on each), two long tables for the bar, two ceiling fans, two wooden cupboards, 10 table chairs, 10 curtains and a woollen carpet.

GNA investigations revealed that the market prices for the items were: air conditioner, ?4.9 million; tabletop fridge ?1.3 million; fluorescent tube ?19,000; bench ?300,000; long table, ?500,000; table chair, ?100,000; cupboard ?500,000; curtain ?50,000 and a woollen carpet ?2 million. The total price should, therefore, not have been more than ?60 million giving a margin 30 per cent to the contractor.

In February, this year, TMA again provided furniture and other items for a computer laboratory set up at Star Basic School at Community Five.

The Parents/Teacher Association (PTA) constructed the structure and connected electricity to it at a total cost of ?60 million and the Meridian Borough of Greenwich supplied the 17 computers.

TMA supplied 17 Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS); a carpet; two 2.5 horsepower Samsung air conditioners; white board; eight long tables and 14 table chairs at a cost of ?152.3 million.

GNA market survey showed that the unit prices were: UPS was ? 1.2 million; 2.5 horsepower Samsung air conditioner was ?9.9 million; one table cost ?500,000; white board was ?500,000 cedis, the cost of a chair was ?100,000 and a carpet was ? 3 million. The total cost of the items supplied should, therefore, not have been more than ?110 million giving a margin of 30 per cent to the contractor.

When Alhaji I.M.J. Husseini, TMA Co-ordinating Director, was asked to comment on the findings of the Ghana News Agency, he explained that the assembly had seen some problems with its procurement and had suspended the Committee, which made the purchases.

He said the suspension would enable the assembly to streamline the procurement, adding that the items were sent to the schools and the court without passing them through the assembly's stores.