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The Minority in parliament has accused the current management of Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation (BOST) of inflating the price of its twin tower office contract.
According to the Ranking member on the Mines and Energy Committee of Parliament, John Jinapor, BOST has inflated the price of its twin tower office contract by a whopping 100%.
Mr. Jinapor said the contract which cost $39 million and was budgeted for by the previous National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration has been increased to $78 million under the current New Patriotic Party (NPP) government.
“We have however noted from recent developments based on documents available to us that the original contract which was valued at $39,000,000.00 (Thirty-Nine Million Dollars) ballooned to a whopping $78,000,000.00 if the two-tower building is accounted for based on the current cost of the single unit valued at $39,000,000.00 (Thirty-Nine Million Dollars). This means the building has been inflated by 100% over the original contract.
“We say so because we have noted that the current Management of BOST decided to acquire only one of the twin unit building due to the precarious financial position of the company, however it applied to the Public Procurement Authority for approval to vary the original contract for the single unit from the original price of $19,500,000.00 per unit to a new cost of $24,000,000.00,” he said.
Addressing a press conference yesterday, John Jinapor called for an immediate independent investigation into the alleged scandal.
“It is our hope that for the first time, the President will gather the courage to cause an independent investigation into this scandal which is of monumental proportion, and punish his officials whose negligence, recklessness, and complicity have led us into this huge mess,” he further noted.
John Jinapor added that anything short of an independent investigation shall be rejected and denounced by the NDC in parliament and the good people of Ghana.
He also indicated that the minority will be vigilant and resolute in their quest to ensure that the continuous “looting and plundering of the resources of BOST”, which is their collective strategic national asset is brought to an immediate halt.
As at the time of going to press yesterday, there was no official statement from BOST management either denying or confirming the allegation.