We All Benefitted From Ghacem - Kwesi Pratt

SCANCEM Bribery Scandal:

Kwesi Pratt Jnr. a renowned journalist and seasoned politician, has added an interesting revelation to The Crusading GUIDE’s reports on allegations of bribery levelled against the former first couple of Ghana, Jerry Rawlings and Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, in a Norwegian court.

The story was that the former first couple received the said money which was in several millions of American Dollars, from the management of Scancem – a Norwegian Cement Company, so as to consolidate its monopoly in the cement industry.

Mr. Pratt has indicated that that allegation was no issue and that the bigger issue was the fact that all major political parties in Ghana as well as the country’s top politicians, also benefited financially and privately from the said cement company. Speaking on Radio Gold, an Accra-based private radio station, Pratt said: “… Indeed, GHACEM has paid money to all the leading politicians in this country and the political parties and this is a fact”.

Sounding very confident and sure of what he was alleging, Mr. Pratt went on, “I want to hear any serious politician of a leading political party in Ghana deny that they have collected any money from GHACEM. Let them deny, NPP, NDC, whatsoever”.

The social commentator, who wields a national position in the Convention People’s Party, stated categorically that GHACEM was a major player in Ghana’s politics and that the company was a sponsor of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the 2000 elections. He stated further that some GHACEM money also went to the National Democratic Congress (NDC).

“…So what is all this holier than thou attitude all over the place, when all of them collected the money? Let them deny publicly that they did not collect any money”, Mr. Pratt bluffed.

Kwesi Pratt Jnr., Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper, admitted that he could not produce the evidence to prove his allegations, but maintained he was speaking the truth.

Commenting on the issue at stake, he said it was important to point out that the bribery allegation against the former first couple was being made by persons who themselves were facing charges of fraud before a court.

He registered his displeasure at media reports which suggest that it was the court that made the allegation against the Rawlingses.

He said the case was a simple one in which a new company, interested in taking over the equity of Scancem, realized that some of its employees had stolen money and forwarded the case to the courts at which the accused persons explained that they paid some of the missing money to Mr. Rawlings and wife as well as other top government officials in Ghana and other countries in West Africa.

Pratt said since the issue was made public in a court of law and the allegation was against a former President, he had no problems with the media deciding to publish the story because it was neither concocted nor fabricated.