Chronicle 18-02-2000
AFTER three hours of a spellbinding revelatory presentation to Parliament last Wednesday, Mr. J.H. Mensah, the Minority Leader in Parliament completely exposed the duplicity and untruths in the various reports made by the Finance Minister, Mr. Richard Kwame Peprah and his deputy in the famous Presidential Jet affair.
His deputy, Hon. Moses Asaga was also humbled while Hon. John Mahama always quick to get a word in edgewise was also humiliated and booed in the process when he sought to "teach" Mr. Mensah about banking issues.
Mr. Mensah's startling expose delivered in the House and from interviews with The Chronicle included the revelation that the address on the lease document on the jet, Gulfstream III, was fictitious, as was the business address of Gallen Ltd the company from which Mr. Peprah claimed the jet was leased.
Mr. Asaga, it emerged, signed a portion of the agreement, but, according to the Minority Leader, he did not even read it because his name had been misspelt "Osaga", and remained uncorrected. This was greeted with gales of laughter, despite pleadings from Asaga that it was a "typo".
The minority was moving for the rejection of the agreement for the purchase of the jet for which the Finance Minister had made initial payments without parliamentary approval, a breach of Constitutional provisions.
Page 120, Section 181 (4a) of the constitution states:
That the terms and conditions of a loan shall be laid before Parliament and
shall not come into operation unless they have been approved by a resolution
of Parliament.
But, the Majority said it was an unforeseen item and covered by Section 177 (Contingencies) which states "advances may be made from that Fund which are authorised by the committee responsible for financial measures in Parliament whenever that committtee is satisfied that there has arisen an urgent or unforeseen need for expenditure for which no other provision exists to meet the need."
The role of a huge international bank, Hong Kong Shangai Banking Corporation (HSBC) in the transaction has also raised very credible case of collusion between them and the Ministry of Finance in the whole affair.
HSBC surprisingly replied to letters of inquiry written by the Minority Leader to Gallen at their Cayman Island address. Mr. Peprah had told the House that Gallen is an affiliate of HSBC.
But, correspondence from HSBC described Gallen Ltd as a "client" to whom they lent money with respect to the transaction, and also the arranger of the lease. Mr. Peprah was also exposed to be a "Representative" of Gallen Ltd and Mr. Mensah was asked by HSBC to direct all further questions to him.
Mr. Mensah described the attitude of HSBC in the inquiries as "evasive" in a letter he sent to the Finance committee and Public Accounts committee members on December 16, 1999.
He also promised Mr. Edward Bullen, Snr. Vice President of HSBC in New York(signatory to the correspondence) to the Banking Supervision authorities in New York. Chronicle sighted him with addresses of major political players in American politics' including Senator Phil Gramm, Chairman of US Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, Mr. Joel D. Shapiro of the International Supervision Division of Banking Supervision and Regulation- Federal Reserve.
Even, after the debate ended with a vote of 83 -38 in favour of the majority, the issue of producing the actual purchase agreement still remained unresolved as the Finance Ministers stoutly refused to submit the agreement for scrutiny. Mr. Mensah indicated that the real story would be told by the agreement.
SHOOTING RANGE
After calculating the interest costs and lease pay off, the MP who received
an ovation after his submissions warned the NDC MPs in particular that they
should remember the shooting range at Teshie where soldiers tied former Head
of State General Kutu Acheampong and others to the stakes and shot them
ostensibly for abusing state funds.
Brandishing a June 1979 copy of The Ghanaian Times which had photographs of the shooting, he said history will be a judge and they would live to be haunted by the vote.
The Majority roared that they will win subsequent elections.
Mr. John Mahama and Sylvester Mensah now taking his first degree course at the University of Ghana were brushed aside by Mensah who was in full battle mode when Hon. Mensah sought to join the filibustering NDC MPs by asking JH to account for some whisky he was alleged to have credited when he was a Minister.
Mr. Mahama was also ridiculed as someone who does not known anything about banking when he tried to play to the gallery.
"I have supervised the entire banking industry in this country for years and you seek to lecture me?" Mr. Mensah charged, turning to the Speaker who had himself received light swipes and asked: Mr. Speaker, should I reply him?". The Speaker Mr. Justice Annan, didn't think so and waved JH to continue, ignoring Mahama who promptly took his seat to guffaws from the House which was also packed with journalists and members of the public and students. Bright-eyed school kids from Ghana International School, one of the premier private schools were also present to capture the debate and the morality of the issues.
Continuing, Mr. Mensah reckoned it was going to cost the burdened Ghanaian tax payer, ¢30 million a day to discharge the loan of $23.5 million.
"That amount will build two classrooms a day for the next 10 years, you know", he said with passion when he spoke to Yours Truly in his office yesterday morning.
Mr. Mensah promised that the matter will not end there and that he was exploring other avenues to keep the matter alive. He expressed diasppointment with religious leaders who he noted have remained silent on such a major "moral issue" even though he had asked for their attention and support last year in a published article in the newspapers.
The aircraft itself, he explained, had had four owners within a matter of a single month.
The Speaker, Mr. Justice Annan, had tried to frustrate him by suggesting that he should have passed the investigation which he conducted through his own personal endeavours to the appropriate Parliamentary Committee.
This view was also expressed by another Honourable Member of Parliament Mr. Modesto Ahiable in interview with The Chronicle yesterday.
Asked whether his constituents would not question him for such an action, he said some of his constituents living in Accra occasionally ask him about certain actions or decisions, but he was sure he can explain his position when he goes to the villages in his constituency.
The Minister of Finance, Mr. Kwame Peprah, has, however, rejected the view of the Minority leader that Gallen does not exist, saying that the Minority was ignorant about international business transactions.
The Minority Leader described the acquisition as immoral since, according to him, it was improper for the govenment to dole out $23m for the plane at a time when the economy was belly up.
Mensah who said he considered the vote on the acquisition more on the lines of morality than on the grounds of political expediency, told his colleagues on the other side to allow their conscience to guide them in their vote, since they would be judged by posterity.
Another issue which emerged during the debate was the startling revelation made by Mr. Hackman Owusu Agyemang to the effect that some personnel of the Air Force had testified before the Finance Committee that they had conducted an evaluation test on the Jet, in June, last year.
According to Owusu Agyemang who is also the M.P for New Juaben North, the Finance Minister, Mr. Kwame Peprah, had earlier told Parliament that the Jet, was acquired in February 4, last year.
Owusu-Agyemang who described the agreement as bogus and inimical to the interest of the nation further revealed that the lease agreement exonerated Gallen from any liabilities while passing same on Ghana, a situation which he said flew in the face of the principles of lease agreements.
This, Owusu Agyemang said, meant that the people of Ghana would have to be burdened with the cost of insurance, repairs and the maintenance of the jet.
In his contribution, the Hon. Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu M.P for Asante Akyem North, said the agreement was a breach of both the Constitution and the Financial Administration Regulations of the country which enjoins the government to seek parliamentary approval before it enters into such transactions..
He sought to know how Mr. Peprah sourced funds for the acquisition of the jet especially when according to him Peprah had told Parliament earlier that the jet was acquired at a time when the house was on recess.