Ameri re-negotiated: Akufo-Addo neck-deep in 'stinky, scandalous' deal – Minority

The Minority in Parliament has called for an immediate suspension of the re-negotiated Ameri deal, calling it scandalous and stinky. The Minority said the cost involved in a deal which has already been given executive approval has been inflated, accusing the Akufo-Addo-led government of being in “indecent hurry”  to “completely rip off” the economy. Speaking on behalf of his minority colleagues, John Abu Jinapor, MP for Yapei/Kusawgu, said President Akufo-Addo should be held liable and responsible for the scandalous deal. Read: Akufo-Addo approves Mytilineos to take over Ameri deal “The president couldn’t have given approval if he did not look into this. It therefore sums up, that the president is very comfortable with this deal. The president is certainly neck-deep and arms-deep into this whole deal and you cannot but hold the president responsible,” he said. “The president cannot extricate himself from this stinking, scandalous and disastrous deal that is about to wreck the whole nation.”

The government has renegotiated the $510 million deal entered into by the John Mahama administration in 2015 to provide an emergency power plant to augment power supply at the peak of the country’s electricity crises. After renegotiation,  government is now asking another entity, Mytilineos International Trading Company to manage the AMERI power plant. Parliament is now being asked to pass the Novation and Amendment Bill to extend the Ameri deal from its original five years to 15 years, which the minority finds “simply unconscionable”. The new deal, the minority on Wednesday told journalists, further exposes the government which rode on the back of “lies and deceit” to power. Mr. Jinapor is therefore asking the government, “in the supreme interest of the nation, suspend the deal and make the details available for proper public scrutiny”.

The deal has equally been questioned by some civil society groups who felt its current state is even worse than the one signed by the previous government. Read also: VRA Senior Staff resist new Ameri deal because ‘it doesn’t make sense’ According to John Jinapor, the deal with Mytilineos was brought to parliament without input from the Attorney General’s Department or the Finance Ministry as required by law. He further stated that the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission also confirmed to a parliamentary committee that it has not approved the tariff regime under the new deal. “Worst of all, there was no value for money audit on this agreement, and so somebody sat somewhere quietly and clandestinely prepared this and then brought it before us. “It is glaring that the current NPP government is in a haste to rush this stinky, inflated and corruption riddled deal through parliament with the ultimate aim of getting parliament to rubber stamp it for their own chop”. The minority is therefore highly suspicious of government’s attempt to stampede parliament to approve the agreement under certificate of urgency. The Yapei/Kusawgu MP said government only have to pay 250 million dollars to own the Ameri plants but, “over the 15 year period, we would be paying one billion, thirty five million US dollars when we are left with two and half years to pay 250 million…and then we own the plants”. By Isaac Essel | editors.3news.com | Ghana