Newscenta Editor Slams Procurement Practices at ECG: “If I Got that Contract, I’ll Also Be Rich”

The Editor of Ghanaian media house Newscenta, Elvis Darko has slammed the procurement practices at the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), labelling them as corrupt.

Speaking on Breakfast Daily on Channel One TV, he said that the way contracts are given out at ECG creates a lot of waste which benefits those at the receiving end of those corrupt deals.

He said such people become millionaires overnight and then describe other Ghanaians as ‘lazy’ for not having made money via similar corrupt means.

He pointed to a contract that was supposed to cost $13m that was given out for $30m as a clear example.

“A $13m procurement should end up around $16m. But we ended up with $30,000,000. So those who did that procurement, they have become rich overnight. Right. They they will tell you that you are lazy. You are not smart. etc.” he said.

Darko continued, “Now do you think if I were given that procurement? If I’m part of those people, why can’t I be rich? Yeah. What smartness do I need to be rich? That you easily give me a contract that is $13m, and I do it, and I make $30m. That’s an eye-opener. That’s something that the auditor has established that the cost is about $30,000,000 from the manufacturer.”

Listen to Elvis Darko’s ECG rant below.

Analysis of Elvis Darko’s procurement rant

The editor is 100% right that Ghana’s procurement laws are one of the biggest causes of corruption in the country.

Particularly when it comes to sole sourcing, politicians are able to give contracts to their cronies at any price they want, whether it brings value to the state or not.

This ends up with a situation where wealth is syphoned out of public hands into private hands, as Darko points out.

It takes no genius to be paid double the value of a contract, fulfil it and then make a 100% profit, suddenly transforming yourself into a millionaire.

That has to be one of the issues that needs tackling if Ghana is ever to succeed as a proper country.