By Prince Ahenkorah
Joyce Bawa Mogtari, Special Aide to Ghana’s President-elect, John Dramani Mahama, has issued a stern warning to those involved in corruption allegations under the current NPP administration to prepare themselves to face the full wrath of the law.
The NDC policy, abbreviated ORAL (Operation Recover All Loots), will help recover all the resources linked to corruption allegations.
The special aide, made these remarks during an interview on Channel One TV on Tuesday, December 10, as she outlined the new government’s commitment to accountability and fiscal responsibility.
She highlighted the biggest priority Ghanaians are expecting from the new NDC government, stating, “The biggest priority is to fix the economy and feed the people, because people are hungry. We need to bring the economy back to life, and everything else would thrive.”
“Ghanaians have given Mahama an overwhelming victory to deliver. We need to recover the looted resources and make sure to complete all abandoned projects,” Joyce Bawa Mogtari said.
“He (Mahama) knows that the young people want to see something different. People want to see respect. People want to see leaders take responsibility.”
“You know that currently, the IPPs owe a lot of money. Why are they owed money? This was actually a very clear intervention, and once they are paid, we will have power. But we have not been told that they have stopped exporting the power. So there must be something wrong. There must be a reason why they are not paying. Why is investment at an all-time low?” she questioned.
“There must be a reason why. Why is it that we are told we have 12 thousand kilometers of roads, but we haven’t seen these roads anywhere? Why are we told that nothing is being done about corruption?”
“Look, we have a new finance minister. What efforts has he made and what has he told you that he is doing to improve the economy? What measures has he announced that would work to improve the economy?”
“Nothing. So the whole country is in limbo, and they continue to spend. And if we had not won the elections, as it is, they would have carried the rest of the money and put it in their pockets and gone home to sleep.”
“So make no mistake: Bawumia has become a symbol of Akufo-Addo’s failure because the economy is …. down. People want to see fiscal responsibility.”
She further, said that now that Mr Mahama has the commanding lead in Parliament, he must not rest on his powers, but must work with the resounding numbers, he has to deliver for the good people of Ghana. “I know some of these measures will take place immediately after the transition.”
“All the young people and men are really interested in ORAL. They want to see each allegation of corruption investigated. They want to see them prosecuted. They want to see us recover some of these monies. They want explanations as to why we have expended $58 million on the national cathedral, taxpayers’ money. They want to know why we don’t have the Pwalugu dam, when we’ve expended $11.8 million. Why are we still experiencing challenges in power distribution, when we have a debt of over billions owed by ECG; even importing meters nobody can use? These things ought to be investigated,” she highlighted.
Joyce Bawa Mogtari, gave a firm assurance that the incoming administration will prioritize the recovery of over $58 million allegedly misused on the controversial National Cathedral project.
The National Cathedral project, initiated under the outgoing New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration, has been a subject of widespread public debate and scrutiny.
The project, envisioned as a monumental Christian worship center and national symbol, has faced delays, controversies, and accusations of financial mismanagement.
Bawa Mogtari, questioned the rationale behind the expenditure of $58 million, claiming that there was little to show for the investment.
She emphasized that the incoming government is determined to uncover the full extent of financial irregularities surrounding the project.
She stated that a comprehensive audit and investigation would be conducted to identify how the funds were utilized and to hold those responsible for any malfeasance accountable.
“It is a history that we don’t want to remember too often. We want to ask what the money was used for, who it went to, and how $58 million expended on that project is questionable, and I am sure there is even more, but because they are in government, they are hiding how much has been expended.”
“How can you expend $58 million and have nothing to show for it? There are a lot of things that we intend to do with that piece of land, and I think that we should focus on recovering the resources and putting them to better use.”
MAHAMA’S FIRST 120 DAYS SOCIAL CONTRACT WITH THE PEOPLE OF GHANA
Nominate within the first 14 days the complete list of Cabinet Ministers for parliamentary approval.
Constitute the LEANEST AND MOST EFFICIENT government under the fourth republic in my first 90 days in office.
Establish a robust CODE OF CONDUCT AND STANDARDS for all government officials.
Hold a National Economic Dialogue to discuss the true state of the economy and prepare a homegrown fiscal consolidation programme to guide the budget.
Within my first 90 days in office, scrap the following draconian taxes to alleviate hardships and ease the high cost of doing business: E-levy, COVID levy, 10% levy on bet winnings, and Emissions levy.
Within my first 90 days in office, review taxes and levies on vehicles and equipment imported into the country for industrial and agricultural purposes.
Commence drafting needed legal amendments and prepare for implementing the 24-Hour Economy Policy under the Office of the President.
Establish an Accelerated Export Development Council (AEDC) to promote exports as part of a broader strategy for economic transformation.
Convene a national consultative conference on EDUCATION to build consensus on needed improvements to the sector.
Implement the ‘No-Academic-Fee’ policy for all first-year students in public tertiary institutions—universities, colleges of education, nursing training institutions, etc.)
Introduce the following social interventions: Free Tertiary Education for Persons with Disabilities, the Ghana Medical Care Trust (MahamaCares) Fund.
Commence the distribution of free sanitary pads to female students in primary and secondary schools
Institute inquiries and/or forensic audits into the following matters of public interest: The collapse of Indigenous Ghanaian banks and financial institutions at a supposed cost of GHS25 billion, illegal printing of money, the US$58 million National Cathedral scandal, illegal and inflated singlesourced contracts, COVID-19 expenditure scandal, PDS, Agyapa, SML, Ambulance spare parts deal, 13th African Games, Sky Train, Pwalugu Dam, Maths Sets, Galamsey Fraud, missing excavators and tricycles, Sputnik-V, BOST Scandal, and others…
Institute a government policy banning political appointees from purchasing state assets.
Allocate seed money for the establishment of the Women’s Development Bank.
Launch the following priority job creation programmes in the first budget: ‘Adwumawura’ Programme, ‘National Apprenticeship Programme’ and ‘One Million Coders Programme’
Commence the review of the Customs (Amendment) Act 2020 to scrap the law banning the importation of salvaged vehicles to rescue the local automotive industry at Suame Magazine, Kokompe, Abossey Okai, among others.
Lay before parliament a new bill to streamline government scholarship administration, prohibit political appointees from accessing government scholarships, and eliminate political patronage, cronyism, nepotism, and corruption in awarding government scholarships
Ban illegal and new mining activities in forest reserves. Roll out our ‘Tree for Life’ and Blue Water Initiative’ to heal and sustainably harness the environment by turning areas and water bodies degraded by illegal mining into economic and ecological recovery hubs.
Launch ‘The Black Star Experience’ initiative as Ghana’s flagship Culture, Arts and Tourism brand to transform Ghana into a preferred tourism destination.
Commence investigative processes to purge state security agencies of all militia and vigilante elements
Re-open investigations into major unresolved criminal cases including the 2020 election killings, Ayawaso West Wuogon by-election violence, murder of Ahmed Hussein-Suale and Silas Wulochamey.
Initiate a probe into the man-made disaster caused by the VRA’s spillage from the Akosombo and Kpong Dams that displaced and destroyed the livelihoods of thousands of citizens in the Volta, Eastern, and Greater Accra.
Initiate immediate steps to compensate the flood victims, including those in the Oti, Bono East and Savanna regions.
Carry out a shakeup of all loss-making SOEs and realign them to break even and transition into profit-making.
