By Paul Mamattah
The founder and leader of the Movement for Change, Alan Kyerematen, has made serious allegations of fraud, regarding the construction of the Komenda Sugar Factory, under the previous National Democratic Congress (NDC) government.
Responding to questions about the factory during an engagement with media practitioners to discuss his Great Transformational Plan (GTP), he expressed disbelief that the NDC, has not been held accountable for what he termed defrauding the country.
Mr Kyerematen, cited the factory’s initial construction cost of 32 million dollars, contrasting it with a subsequent valuation of only 15 to 16 million dollars, following its installation and commissioning.
“The NDC has gone and borrowed $32 million to build a factory, and by the time it’s operational, the evaluation reveals its worth significantly less. This raises serious questions about their financial oversight.” Mr Kyerematen said.
He emphasized the need for accountability, stating that after defrauding the country, the NDC, are still making noise about this.
Mr Kyerematen, also recounted his experience upon taking office as Minister for Trade and Industry, where he attempted to resolve the factory’s issues by inviting private investors to take over its operations.
“I reached out to a gentleman interested in the factory, only to find out that his bid was merely for bidding purposes, as the actual value of the factory was far less than expected.” He explained.
He noted that his tenure and Trades Minister, received various bids, none exceeding $35 million, stressing that a Ghanaian investor was even willing to pay just $20 million for the factory.
Mr Kyerematen’s time as the minister, has since pursued a forensic audit to uncover discrepancies in the project’s financial dealings and has turned to the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) for further investigation.
“All these developments suggest some fraudulent work was involved,” Mr Kyerematen asserted.
He reiterated that his tenure is in no way responsible for the original financial decisions linked to the factory.
“We did not borrow the money, and we did not carry out the evaluation.” he added.
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