Dr. George Crentsil, Chief Executive of the Ghana Standards Authority (GSA), has allegedly pocketed an amount of $1.2 million (approximately GH¢5 million) he purportedly received as kickback from a construction firm that did some work for the Authority, according to the findings of an Investigative Committee.
The firm, Lemet Construction Company, had been awarded a GH¢15.2 million contract to build a new training school and hostel facility for the Ghana Standards Authority and for no stated reason was found to have given an amount of $1.2 million to Dr. Crentsil.
There were further allegations that apart from the $1.2 million kickback, the same contractor supplied building materials and marshaled workers to complete a three-bedroom storey building for the CEO at East Legon, a comfy community in Accra.
Joy Fm first broke the story on Monday and it sparked public interest, with calls on the security agencies to take up the matter.
The station said Dr. Crentsil declined comment on the matter when he was contacted. DAILY GUIDE could also not reach him for comment on the alleged kickback scandal.
However, the jaw-dropping report from the Investigative Committee, set up upon the direction of former Trade and Industry Minister, Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, stated plainly that “the Executive Director [Dr. George Crentsil] admitted taking money from the contractor but refused to state how much, stating it was a sensitive matter.”
According to the report, “It was revealed that the Executive Director took one million United States of America Dollars ($1,000,000) from the contractor working on the training school on one occasion.
“On another occasion he [Dr. George Crentsil] again took Two hundred thousand United States of America Dollars ($200,000) from the contractor.
“It was also revealed that the contractor working on the training school provided materials and personnel to complete a three-bedroom storey building for the Executive Director at East Legon, a suburb of Accra. The Executive Director, however, denied owning any house or building at East Legon. He also denied that he owns a hospital at East Legon.”
The four-member committee was set up by the Board of Directors of the GSA after an unnamed management member of the company wrote a whistle-blowing letter to Ekwow Spio-Garbrah.
“After I received the first anonymous letter, I called the executive director of Ghana Standards Authority and quizzed him on the complaints. But when I received the second letter, I directed the board to investigate the matter. I, however, wasn’t able to take action because the report was submitted when I was leaving office,” Joy Newsquoted Spio.
The station also quoted the then Board Chairman of the Standards Authority, Amadu Sorogho – a defeated Member of Parliament (MP) for Madina – to have said “a committee was set up at the instance of an authority. We finished our work, as the chairman, we read it; we confronted people that we needed to confront and we sent it with a covering letter to the appropriate authority with the recommendations.”
More Revelations
The Investigative Committee, after seven sittings and interviewing various individuals, including staff of the GSA, said a witness had testified that “one of the saloon cars allocated to the Executive Director, and being used by his wife, has on a number of occasions been seen drawing fuel from the GSA.”
It also investigated an allegation that for several years, the Executive Director collects not less than GH¢30,000 every month using the names of Mr. Sakyitey and Mr. Nagetey on initiations for destination activities for himself.
It concluded, “Given the range of issues and the time given to the Committee to complete its work, and given that some of the issues are very sensitive, the Committee thinks that there may be the need for further investigations, especially with respect to the money allegedly taken by the Executive Director from the contractor working on the training school, and the thirty thousand Ghana Cedis (GH¢30,000) in relation to initiations for destination activities.”
More anon
Source: Daily Guide
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Ghanaians, we have ourselves to blame! People are pointing fingers at their enemies while the real ***barred word*** are quietly plundering the state resources and coffers! Oh, Ghana! When will we learn, at last? Let us bring each and every ***barred word***, Ghanaian or foreigner to face criminal justice! God protect Ghana!!
y are our people so wicked?? walk on the streets of Accra and see the number of people suffering under the hot sun trying to put food on their tables so do these leaders care... God will punish u all.
Where r de laws of dis country. De laws r weak
Dr Crentil you see you end. You had the penchant for chopping girls. Buying cars for national service girls as birthday gift. You were thinking with your ***barred word***. You will fuck any girl, married or not. Your greed has brought you this far. now let's see if you will survive this.
I can't think far! How can one give a kickback of 1.2m dollars which is about 5milion cedis and a house out of a project of 15 million cedis? I smell some mischief in this story. why quote the kickback in dollars and the project cost in cedis. 5 million is about 1/3 of the total cost of the project ( 15 million cedis). Hope some is not just trying to embarrass the gentleman.
@Karm. Know the facts before you speak or write anything. The Executive Director has not been there for ages. he was appointed by late Prez Mills and continued to serve under JDM. Since JDM was Mills' vice, it is the same government in power that the Executive Director served. It still boils down to NDC and their tthieveryy. This man was all over the place before, during and after the 2008 elections making noise about how NDC would rule Ghana for the better and now the self proclaimed saint is in the news for the same reason JDM was investigated by Mills over the Brazil Embraer jet. At hey all not tthievess? We shall soon see those who have rented apartments in the Nsawam gated community.
Just cage him! One Man No Chop. If Ghana was your company/business would you run it that way??? Just Cage him!
Every story concerning misappropriation of funds then NPP useful iidiotts jumps and conclude the person is link to the hard working JDM. This is not an appointee by Best Ghanaian president ever JDM. He's been there for ages, stop the ignoramus and dogmatic comments.
If the NDC had won the 2016 elections, they would have sold Ghana! Almost all appointees of mahama were corrupt just like mahama himself! If Ghanaians make a mistake and vote these cor-rupt, ***barred word***, cr-im-inials in the NDC back to power someday, they would do worse things!
Yoo God is watching