More revelations: Woyome secured €1.2bn

• Posted on November 4, 2014November 4, 2014
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

Alfred Agbesi Woyome, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) bankroller, accused of fraudulently receiving GH¢ 51.28 million judgment debt, has stated that the Local Organizing Committee of (LOC) also approved his claims against the government, apart from the then Attorney-General, Betty Mould-Iddrisu. Woyome told the court yesterday that he secured €1.2 billion for the stadia project.

In a cross-examination led by a principal state attorney in the court presided over by Justice John Ajet-Nassam, Woyome claimed that the ministry of Finance, consultants and other stakeholders supported his claim of financial engineering in connection with the construction of the stadia for the Confederation of African Nations (CAN) 2008.

Mr. Woyome, when asked why he stated in a document that he had incurred some costs in the construction and so the cancellation of the purported bid he had with Government had cost him a lot, said he was not talking for himself but on behalf of Waterville, M-Powapak and others.

Mrs. Obuobisa, the principal state attorney, pointed out to him that those claims were not on behalf of Waterville and the others but on his own behalf. But he insisted that what he meant was that he and the other firms had incurred costs but he did not mean himself personally.

In addition, he maintained that the €3.6 million he received was not in connection with the claim he had made against the government

He however, admitted that he initially had only personal business with Waterville but said whatever money Waterville paid to M-Powapak, of which he was at the helm of affairs, was in relation to structuring for Waterville.

In response to the assertion that he received €3.6 million on behalf of M-Powapak for all the work, Woyome said that the said money was sourcing for Waterville from Hong Kong Shanghai Bank which was entirely different from the bid.

He said he had a claim against the government in totality in connection with “the amount which was financially engineering, including Accra, Kumasi, Cape Coast and Sekondi Sports Stadia.”

According to him, he got 85% of the funding which amounted to €1.2 billion with 15% as a grant approved by the sub-committee which Government was required to accept.

When the state attorney put it to him that other projects he mentioned were hospitals, tissue culture radiation plants to solve poverty and Olympic stadia construction were not part of the expression of interest of Government, he said it was part of the funding.

Woyome said he had legitimate claims against the government and that he was not claiming monies he was not entitled to.

The case has been adjourned to November 5, 2014.

Woyome had said at the last hearing that the bid with Government was cancelled after it had received concurrent approval and maintained that payment to M-powapak by Waterville was in relation to structuring and not financial engineering.

The state attorney put it to the accused person that records available showed that the agreement M-Powapak had with Waterville was not annulled, to which he insisted it was.

Mrs. Obuobuisa further put it to Woyome that there was an agreement between M-Powapak and Waterville that all fees had been settled and that there would be no fees payable then or in future.

In response, the accused person, a retired diplomat, said after the termination of the agreement M-Powapak had with Waterville, an agreement was reached and payments were made to M-Powapak, not to him.

By Fidelia Achama