Investigative Journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni Calls for Complete Discontinuation of Zoomlion Contract

Journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni has penned an open letter to Malik Basintale, the acting CEO of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), urging him to completely discontinue the Zoomlion contract. Awuni argues that the contract has bred corruption and inefficiency and that district assemblies can supervise and pay their own sweepers directly.

According to Awuni, the current arrangement has led to a situation where assemblies are forced to employ their own sweepers, citing the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) and Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) as examples. He suggests that Zoomlion's role in refuse collection can continue, but assemblies should award contracts for this purpose.

Awuni references his previous investigations and the GYEEDA report (2013), which highlights shady deals surrounding Zoomlion. He offers his support to Basintale in fighting for the best interests of Ghana.

The call for discontinuation of the contract comes after Basintale reassured Ghanaians that the contract in its current form would not be renewed, describing it as "evil". Awuni's letter suggests that a complete overhaul of the system is necessary to ensure fairness and efficiency.

Read Letter Below

Dear Malik Basintale,

Thank you for the reassurance that the contract in its current form will not be renewed because it is evil. This is a good step.

However, the issue is not about reviewing the contract or renewing it in another form. It must be discontinued completely.

We don't need a middleman between the assemblies and the people who sweep their markets. The Bongo District Assembly can supervise its sweepers without a contract being awarded in Accra to that effect.

Let the sweepers report to the assemblies so that they are paid directly and in full. Even if we give all the 850 cedis to them, it won't be enough in this economy.

Currently, many of the assemblies employ their own sweepers and supervise them to sweep their markets because they don't control the sweepers supervised by Zoomlion and cannot account for them. The AMA and KMA are prime examples of this. The AMA petitioned the YEA in 2022 to this effect. (I have that letter.)

Zoomlion has a separate contract to collect the refuse after it is swept. If the assemblies want to keep that contract, they can go ahead and award it to whoever they wish to award it to. As for the sweepers who are managed through the YEA, we don't need a middleman.

That arrangement has bred so much corruption. If you won't take my word and the evidence of my investigations, look at page 131 of the GYEEDA report, which President Mahama commissioned in 2013 when I first investigated this. There's a copy in your office.

Zoomlion is involved in too many shady deals, and keeping the company in this arrangement will defeat this purpose. You have my support in fighting for the best for our country. I wish you well, my brother.

Yours sincerely,

Manasseh Azure Awuni