Ablakwa details new stadia renovations expenditure, points Akufo-Addo’s cousin as complicit
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Annual Payments Breakdown
Intercepted payment vouchers show that since 2019, President Akufo-Addo and former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta ensured that their cousin, Kelvin Ofori-Atta, received large sums annually for stadium rehabilitations. Kelvin Ofori-Atta owns Coupbay and Cisdan, the companies awarded contracts to renovate the Accra Sports Stadium and the Essipong Sports Stadium.
Here is a breakdown of the payments:
1. March 18, 2019: Coupbay received GHS6,006,868.44 for the Accra Sports Stadium.
2. June 18, 2020: Coupbay received GHS10,662,700.28 for the Accra Sports Stadium.
3. March 10, 2021: Coupbay received GHS4,754,829.56 for the Accra Sports Stadium.
4. May 27, 2022: Coupbay received GHS4,325,539.84 for the Accra Sports Stadium.
5. December 29, 2023: Cisdan received GHS6,511,245.66 for the Essipong Sports Stadium.
These payments total GHS32,261,183.78.
Failure to achieve value for money
Ablakwa argues that despite the massive investment, the rehabilitations did not deliver value for money, resulting in the CAF ban. He highlights the difficulty of ensuring performance and accountability in transactions marred by conflicts of interest. The situation has left Ghana in the humiliating position of seeking assistance from neighbouring countries like Togo and Ivory Coast to host international football competitions.
Ablakwa hinted that when the National Democratic Congress (NDC) is voted into power in the upcoming December 7, 2024 election, the government would hold those responsible for this international embarrassment accountable through the implementation of “Operation-Recover-All-Loot” (ORAL).
