The Minister for Private Sector Development, Hon Kwamena Bartels last Friday took a tough but necessary stand when he told a visiting German official that government will not hold back its decision to review contracts that were signed under the former National Democratic Congress (NDC) administrations that it sees as questionable.
He intimated that while it is true that the government is bent on doing everything possible to encourage genuine investors to work in the county, it would not encourage investors who involve in shady deals with politicians at the expense of Ghanaians.
Hon Bartels said this in a strong but soft tone when Dr Stefan Oswald, Counsellor in the Department for Financial Cooperation in the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development, Bonn, Federal Republic of Germany, paid a courtesy call on him at the State House.
He was responding to a concern expressed by the German Counsellor, who revealed that there were indications from the point of view of some firms that contracts which they signed under the former NDC were being questioned by the new NPP administration, making specific reference to the Gateway Service Limited (GSL) initiative, which involved direct spectrum in Ghana.
Dr Oswald was actually worried that if the previous government did not follow all the necessary procedures then to have those agreements fully legal, it is not the commercial counterparts who should suffer from the arrangement. But hear him before then, expressing the German Government’s support for the Government of Ghana: “The German Government will continue to assist Ghana, but is not for the German Government to decide which sector they are going to continue to assist Ghana in, rather it is at the advantage of the Ghanaian Government to decide.”
“The German Government is very much interested in countries that are involved in the private sector development…private sector development in Ghana is certainly a step forward,” Dr Oswald said.
He then continued, “There are indications from the point of view of the firms involved and concerned that contracts which had legally been signed by the previous administration are nowadays being questioned. There is in the contest of the Gateway initiative involved in direct spectrum in Ghana… Our opinion as the German Government is to support the things that are clear and going in a legal way.
On the other hand, if the previous Government did not follow all the necessary procedures to have the whole things really fully legal…I think it is not the commercial counterparts who should suffer out of such an arrangement.” He added, “There is the need for Government to look at the psychological effect the move would have on the outside world and the willingness to bring direct investment to Ghana.”
“I am not fully involved,” he said, adding “what ever one does there is a need to look in this respect that money is like an animal in the wild that would quickly run away from a squeaky sound and Government should see a potential investor as a customer.”
The concern expressed by Dr Oswald has come barely a month after the Government made it categorically clear following months of intense painstaking review that it will abrogate the Telecom Malaysia contract, which is part of many agreements signed under the previous administration.
But Hon Bartels maintained and made it clear that the NPP government is intent on running an administration that is transparent and as such contracts, which it is believed to be questionable, would be reviewed. Here is Hon Bartels, “Certainly, customer care is what the Government is set to achieve and that is the purpose of this ministry, but let me make it clear that this Government is intent on running an administration which is transparent.”
He continued, “There were contracts we came to meet which have a lot of question marks. For example, the Road Sector in one day, about 23 contracts were signed and on the same day mobilisation fees paid.” Coming back, he said, “I believe you are referring to the GSL agreement, the GSL agreement is being reviewed and the interesting thing is that, in that review there are question marks. GSL compacters themselves are willing to make various compromises so as to have the review of the agreement done to the satisfaction of everybody.”
“So let me put it this way, we will do our very best to promote the private sector, but we will not want to encourage agreements which we believe are not in the interest of our people,” that was Hon Bartels, with a last reference to the Ghana Telecom and Telecom Malaysia, which the government has declared its intention to abrogate.
He said the government is keen on setting a standard whereby investors would operate independently without conniving with a party, “so that when another government ascends to power it can operate without fear.”
Meanwhile, earlier in his presentation, Dr Oswald called on the government to expedite action towards the fast divesture of the National Investment Bank (NIB), which the German Development Bank (DED) is providing equity for to enable it boost the private sector initiative from which the present government is birthed.
