Ghana Risk Return To An Era Of Dumsor If Gov’t Fails To Terminate PDS Agreement – Jacob Yeboah

Independent Presidential Candidate for 2012 and 2016, Jacob Osei Yeboah popularly known as JOY2012 has predicted that Ghana risk return to an era of load-shedding popularly called “Dumsor” if government fails to terminate the agreement between the Power Distribution Services (PDS).

According to him, the report by FTI Consulting, a United States-based consulting firm commissioned by the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) to investigate whether or not Power Distribution Services (PDS) Ltd duly won the contract to manage the assets of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) indicates that Al Koot has no financial capacity to handle the demand guarantees of PDS.

In a release signed by Jacob Yeboah and copied to thepressradio.com on Monday, September 9, 2019 stated that “Assuming without admitting any direct corrupt act, it is evidently clear that Al Koot has no financial capacity to handle the demand guarantees of PDS. The Board of Al Koot should have authenticated the demand guarantees and should have also been signed by Osman Hag Musa, the Chief Officer of General Insurance”.

He maintained that the failure of PDS to meet the conditionalities and prudent business equity participation of 51% shareholding by PDS can have dire consequences on IPPs sustainability and might plunge the nation to another Dumsor era.

“There is no payment of the 51% equity shareholding* of PDS made or in receipt as a prudent business transaction. *This is totally unacceptable for the government to give 51% of GHc22 Billion company free of charge against the taxpayers and the public purse* . The government can raise this capital through Private and IPO for improved cash injection for power distribution by ECG”. The release stated.

Below is the full release

FTI FORENSIC AUDIT/INVESTIGATION INTO DEMAND GUARANTEES SUBMITTED BY POWER DISTRIBUTION SERVICES

The office of JOY2012 released a press statement on July 15, 2019 urging the government to give *PDS back to Ghanaians due to the inability of the former to honour her financial obligations and guarantees to ensure stability in power distribution* .

The above subject report submitted by FTI Consulting dated 3rd September 2019 has reinforced without any iota of ambiguity that, H.E. Nana Addo led government have no option but to terminate the Lease Assignment and Agreement (LAA) that Commissioned PDS due to varied failed conditionalities and prudent business equity participation of 51% share Holding by PDS .

These four points among many infractions should suffice for the termination of PDS deal.

• Assuming without admitting any direct corrupt act, it is evidently clear that Al Koot has no financial capacity to handle the demand guarantees of PDS. The Board of Al Koot should have authenticated the demand guarantees and should have also been signed by Osman Hag Musa, the Chief Officer of General Insurance.

*Al Koot has demonstrated the fraudulent signatory of Yahya Al Nouri, the Insurance Manager by suspending him pending further investigations* . The laws of Qatar cannot predictably hold Al Koot to honour any call on the demand guarantees by ECG. In effect, there is not even insurance demand guarantee covering the LAA.

*The PDS LAA should be immediately terminated as there is no lease security per Articles 3.2(L) and 5.11.*

• The FTI conclusion report (7) also stated that only $8M out of $12.25M was provided by shareholders. $1M by Ayensu and $7M through a Cal Bank Loan to another shareholder Kwabena Boateng Aidoo PDS used operating cash flow to pay the remaining $4.25M on 17 May, 2019.
• The $7M loan was also paid with operating cashflows after the transfer. Even PDS shareholders when the demand guarantees were changed from direct bank payment or Letter of Credit to Insurance, *could only raise $1M out of $12.5M insurance Premium, the remaining $11.25M were drawn from PDS cashflow. This is robbing Peter to pay Paul.*
• Schedule 10 is explicit on Bank payment or Letter of credit per article 5.11 of LAA. So definitely, the insurance replacement has no known demand guarantees call in the LAA. *This is in total breach of the LAA and requires parliamentary amendment and approval and this constitutes good grounds* that the PDS LAA contract should be terminated.
• *There is no payment of the 51% equity shareholding* of PDS made or in receipt as a prudent business transaction. *This is totally unacceptable for the government to give 51% of GHc22 Billion company free of charge against the taxpayers and the public purse* . The government can raise this capital through Private and IPO for improved cash injection for power distribution by ECG.

The office of JOY2012 would want to remind the call by the President, *H.E. Nana Addo, urging all to be citizens* for the government and MiDA in particular *not to relent to create a commonwealth from LAA by terminating the PDS deal*. The *failure of PDS performing can have dire consequences on IPPs sustainability* and might plunge the nation to another Dumsor era.

We must (government) *endeavor to give the power sector back to Ghanaians* . *The PDS saga calls for more citizens* to rise and not Idiots or Tribespeople according to the Ancient Greeks categorization of 3 types of people in each nation.

God bless our homeland Ghana.

*2020 Elections; Your Vote is Your Wisdom!*

Source: Thepressradio.com