I saved Ghana from financial loss -Osafo Maafo

The former Minister for Youth and Sports under the erstwhile New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration, Mr. Yaw Osafo Maafo, has shrugged off calls for his arrest in connection with the controversy surrounding the unlawful payment of GH¢58 million to a National Democratic Congress (NDC) business tycoon, Mr. Alfred Agbesi Woyome.

Mr. Osafo Maafo contends that contrary to suggestions that his action led to the state incurring the debts which Mr. Woyome

allegedly laid claim to, the former Akim Oda Member of Parliament (MP) says his intervention led to the state gaining huge amounts of monies, which could have gone to Vamed Construction.

Supporters and sympathisers of the ruling NDC have been trumpeting for the arrest of Mr. Osafo Maafo, who was said to have abrogated the alleged contract between the state and Vamed Construction, the firm which was said to have won the open tender bid for the construction of stadia for the CAN 2008 tournament.

A cabinet memo written by Mr. Osafo Maafo had warned the then government of the NPP about the consequences of resorting to sole sourcing and truncating the open bidding process.

Functionaries of the NDC believe that Mr. Osafo Maafo's action was the genesis of the on-going brouhaha between the state and the NDC financier, and have called on the security agencies to arrest the former Minister.

But, Mr. Osafo Maafo has laughed off the calls, stressing that Ghanaians have him to thank rather than be vilified, because had it not been for his intervention, the state would have lost millions of Ghana cedis to the projects.

Speaking on Angel FM in Kumasi, the former Minister argued that instead of the state paying over $79 million, which was being demanded by Vamed and its consortium, the resort to sole sourcing, which necessitated the coming in of the Chinese firm, led to almost 50 percent cut off from the cost of the project.

'Sometimes, it is very funny when you hear some NDC sympathisers making loud noises and saying I should be arrested, when I actually ensured that Ghana does not become a loser in the long run,' he emphasised. 'Arrest me for what?' he charged.

Mr. Osafo Maafo argued that once the Chinese firm was ready to undertake the same project for a fee far lower than that of Vamed Construction and its allies, it was only prudent and logic that a poor nation like Ghana, with limited financial strength, should go for the China deal, which only did not save us some money, but also ensured that we completed the projects in time for the CAN 2008 tournament.

The former Minister reiterated his earlier stance not to respond to any invitation from EOCO, but stated that he was ever ready to co-operate with the CID or Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) should they invite him for questioning.

Vikings Meeting
The February meeting of the Mensah Sarbah Hall Alumni Association of the University of Ghana, Legon, takes place at the GBC Club House, adjacent the Jubilee House in Accra at 6:00 p.m., this evening.

The meeting will take a number of far-re-reaching decisions. Vikings will be briefed on the Hostel project on campus, and review last December's trip on the Volta Lake.

According to Vikings President, Mrs. Diffie Agyarko Kusi, the meeting will discuss various proposals for Vikings activities this year.

The usual chilled beer and other drinkables are assured.