The Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) has completed its investigations into alleged organised criminality in contract awarding at the Ministry of Roads and Highways.
Professor Stephen Adei, a former Rector of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), made the accusations that prompted the investigation.
In October 2023, Professor Adei raised public alarm over corruption in the granting of road contracts. He said that those seeking contracts were informed they had to pay a bribe of one million cedis up in advance.
The Ministry of Roads and Highways refuted the allegations, stating that their contract-awarding systems are transparent, competitive, and legitimate. They later asked EOCO to look into the incident.
Read Also: Instagram trying nudity blurring to stop ‘sextortion’
According to a private report on the probe acquired by Graphic Online, EOCO deemed Professor Adei’s views “unsubstantiated and highly presumptuous.” According to the report, Professor Adei’s statements were an oversimplification of the Ministry’s procurement procedure and may have been affected by a greater image of corruption in the nation, as highlighted in a UNODC report from 2022.
The EOCO report further indicates that, while Professor Adei claimed a friend who suggested the purported bribery requirement, he was unable to give a name or concrete proof to back up his assertions. He also stated that his usage of the Ministry of Roads and Highways was purely illustrative.
Following this, EOCO closed the investigation, finding the claims unfounded.
The Ministry of Roads and Highways expressed satisfaction with the investigation’s findings in a news statement dated April 12, 2024. They added that EOCO found Professor Adei’s statements were “unfortunate and general” and that the matter had been “disposed of.”
The Ministry emphasized its commitment to openness and due procedure when awarding contracts.
