ASKA deal: Fix procurement loopholes and stop shifting political blame – COPEC to gov’t

By: Eugene Dogbatse Atsu
Executive Secretary of the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC), Duncan Amoah, has called for reforms to Ghana’s procurement system, saying stronger oversight is needed to curb corruption.

Speaking on Citi FM, Mr. Amoah said investigations into procurement-related scandals should focus on uncovering systemic failures rather than becoming battlegrounds for political parties.

He argued that public officials who facilitate administrative processes should not automatically be blamed for procurement infractions without clear evidence of wrongdoing.

“People are there to facilitate processes for ministers and ministries. They handle documents and requests as part of their duties, so we must understand the exact role each person played before assigning blame,” he said.

Mr. Amoah stressed that Ghana’s anti-corruption efforts must be guided by facts and not political considerations.

“As a country, we can go on a certain probe, and that probe should be devoid of partisanship,” he stated.

He noted that the recent attention on procurement breaches should serve as an opportunity to examine broader weaknesses within the public sector.

“AKSA is on the front pages today because a certain individual has been convicted, but a lot more infractions have happened over the years. Some even happened after 2014,” he said.

According to him, successive governments often fail to correct weaknesses in the procurement system, allowing the same problems to persist.

“Once somebody creates a loophole, the next person finds a way to enlarge it. We don’t correct the systems,” he remarked.

Mr. Amoah said recovering lost funds is important, but preventing future losses should be an even greater priority.

“I am interested in sealing those loopholes. It is the loopholes that create opportunities for further corruption,” he emphasized.

He also questioned whether government expenditure over the years has translated into corresponding development across the country.

“At the end of every accounting year, government spends billions. If you look across the country, do you see investments that reflect the amount spent?” he asked.

He further called for stronger parliamentary scrutiny of budgets and expenditure proposals, insisting that lawmakers must take sufficient time to review government spending plans.

“If Parliament needs a week to examine one ministry’s budget, then it should take that week. We should not approve things hurriedly because of urgency,” he said.