BOST blows GH¢1.9m on bonuses for Directors

• Posted on December 21, 2016
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

-On bonuses for directors

-MD alone pockets GH¢725,000

YOUR authoritative Finder has sighted a document which reveals that the Board of Directors and a Petroleum Advisor of the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company Limited (BOST) shared GH¢1.9million of the state-owned firm’s profit for 2015.

The document titled ‘Annual Profit Sharing Computations’ listed the beneficiaries as Mr Kwame Awuah Darko, Managing Director (MD) of BOST, Mr Albert Akpalu, Mr Alfred Botchway, Madam Comfort Ahwoi, Kakra Essamuah, Mr Kofi Adams, Mr Kojo Amissah, Professor Ahiawodor, all board members and Mr Louis Tanoe, Special Advisor to the MD.

The breakdown is as follows: Mr Awuah Darko,-GH¢725,000; Mr Tanoe – GH¢546,000, Mr Akpalu – GH¢76,000, Mr Botchway – GH¢76,000, Madam Ahwoi – GH¢76,000, Mr Kakra Essamuah – GH¢76,000, Mr  Kofi Adams – GH¢76,000, Mr Amissah – GH¢76,000 and Mr Ahiawodor – GH¢76,000.

The total amount paid to the other seven board members is GH¢532,000 which is less than the GH¢725,000 paid to Mr Awuah Darko alone as well as the GH¢546,000 dished out to his Special Advisor.

This GH¢1.9million is said to be outside salaries paid to the MD and his special advisor as well as sitting allowances paid to board members.

This revelation once again raises questions about boards of public institutions awarding themselves bonuses but when losses are incurred tax payers monies are used to pay.

This amount was shared to the board members and the Special Advisor because Mr Awuah Darko had publicly declared that BOST made a half year profit of $21million in 2015.

GH¢1.125m paid for empty office 

It has also emerged that BOST paid a colossal GH¢1.125m for keeping an empty office it vacated for two years before handing over the keys to the owners in June 2016.

BOST quits $25,000 office to rent $43,000 per month  

It is also learnt that BOST has vacated its rented office in Airport Residential Area, which was costing the company $25,000 per month, and rented a new office in Dzorwulu at a cost of $43,000 per month – a move which experts say does not make economic sense.

BOST building $38m office

Sources also said BOST is putting up a new office building around Gulf House at a cost of $38million.

The sources said BOST made an upfront payment of $10million before the project even started.

The project is being undertaken by Rolidar Limited.

By Elvis DARKO, Accra