- Stammers over amount of state cash used on brother-in-law?s bungalow

The Western Regional Minister, Mr. Joseph Boahen Aidoo, has given conflicting accounts about the exact amount spent for the renovation and refurbishment of his brother-in-law?s private bungalow at Wassa Akropong, to serve as residence for the DCE for Amenfi East.

Besides a whopping ?830million that was used to refurbish the DCE?s residence, another issue that has raised eyebrows in the area is a ?920million that was also spent and captured as amount used to refurbish the District Coordinating Director (DCD) bungalow.

Though the minister had told the Chronicle in an interview last Sunday at his residence that the state spent ?689.5million for the renovation and refurbishing of his brother-in-law?s private house as the residence for the DCE, the minister, who was Acting DCE for the Assembly, in his handing over notes of the newly created Amenfi East Assembly, after its inauguration on August 27, this year, captured ?830million as cost for the renovation and refurbishment of the DCE?s bungalow.

?The actual amount spent so far on the renovation is ?422 million while the furnishing was over ?267million but not over ?800 million you are bragging about,? the minister who was so hostile throughout the interview told the Chronicle.

When his attention was drawn to the ?830 million he emphatically stated as the cost for the renovation and refurbishment of the bungalow, he asked this reporter whether he had never mistakenly written something in his career.

?Are you saying you have never committed an error while writing a story? If my handing over notes captured ?830 million that is an error,? he said.

However a letter dated June 16, this year with references number AEDA/D4/1, by the Amenfi East District Assembly, to the Regional Chief State Attorney to intervene on the tenancy agreement between the Assembly and the minister?s brother-in-law Nana Ntori Bonkyi Akomeah, also had ?830m as the cost for the refurbishment.

?The total contract sum, together with electrical installations, furniture, fixtures and fittings amounted to over eight hundred million cedis (?800,000,000)?, stated the letter to the chief state Attorney.

But the minister had insisted to the Chronicle that the actual amount spent on the renovation was ?422 million while the refurbishment cost the state over ?267million.

The letter further revealed that the government had spent over ?800million on the house but the landlord was still insisting that the Assembly was to occupy the house for only 36 calendar months beginning June 1, 2004.

This means that with the huge investment by the state in the project the DCE was only going to stay in the house for about two years and hand it over. Mr. Boahene Aidoo, who is also MP for Amenfi East told the paper in the interview that his brother in-law offered the house to the Assembly to use for free and only return it to him as and when the Assembly would have put up its own bungalow for the DCE.

However, insiders and available documents have proven otherwise, the claim by the minister that his brother-in-law offered the house to be used until the Assembly put up a new one.

?It is never true that the house in question was offered free to the Assembly. The owner who happened to be the minister?s associate and brother In-law is even forcing the assembly to sign a tenancy agreement that the Assembly and DCE is going to occupy the house for 36 calendar months beginning June 1, 2004 when he offered to give the house to the assembly. After 36 calendar months the house would automatically revert to him (the owner) for his use,? sources close to both the minister and his brother ?in ?law told the Chronicle.

Chronicle gathered that following the decision to create a new district (Amenfi East) at Wassa Akropong, Nana Ntori Bonkyi Akomeah who happened to be the brother-in-law of the minister offered his building for hiring to serve as residence for the DCE in June 2004. Though he said he was giving out the building for three years, the paper learnt that the parties executed no formal agreement.

On August 27, 2004, the Western Regional Co-ordinating Council awarded a contract for the refurbishment of the house to KAMCOT Ltd at over ?770 million and subsequently awarded installation of electricity to the house to BISAWACO Elect. Works at the cost of ?60 million.

The minister, who put up a hostile and defensive posture throughout the interview debunked speculation doing the rounds at Wassa Akropong and his constituency to the effect that state resources were strategically used for the renovation of his brother-in-law?s house which he is now asking to be handed over to him at the end of 36 calendar months.

?It is very sad for huge state resources which could have been used to build a new house at Akropong to be used for the refurbishment of the minister?s associate?s house,? a resident of Akropong told the paper.

At one instance the minister told The Chronicle on phone that a number of people offered their houses and his brother-in-law?s was short-listed but during the abrasive interview he said when the Omanhene of Akropong beat gong-gong to look for a house to be used for the DCE residence nobody came up to offer his building.