The Editor-In-Chief of the New Crusading Guide Newspaper, Abdul Malik Kweku Baako, has indicated that he will back the Health Minister, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, to resign.
His comment follows enormous backlash from the public and a call by the Minority in Parliament for Mr Agyeman-Manu to resign.
According to Mr Baako, the Health Minister will do himself a lot of good if he tenders in a resignation letter.
The Ad-hoc Committee tasked to probe the procurement of the Sputnik V vaccines disclosed that Mr Agyeman-Manu breached procurement processes and constitutional requirements about the contract.
Speaking on JoyNews’ flagship programme, Newsfile, Saturday, August 7, Mr Baako explained that there is no justification for what he described as an “unmitigated disaster” by the Health Minister.
He noted that signing the deal without any “Cabinet, Public Procurement Board or Parliamentary approval, is a mess.”
“If he’s minded to resign, I’ll endorse it, I will vote for him,” Mr Baako said.
The Ad-hoc Committee set up by Parliament to probe the contract submitted its report to the House on Friday, August 6, 2021.
The Committee established in their report that the contract with Messrs Al Maktoum, was signed without the required approval by the Public Procurement Authority under Sections 40 and 41 of Act 663 and without regard to the requirements of Article 181(5) of the Constitution.
“The Committee found that the amount of $2,850,000.00 (representing 50% of the contract sum of $5,700,000.00) has been paid to Messrs Al Maktoum and this translates into the cedi equivalent of GH¢16,331,640.00 converted at the then prevailing exchange rate of US$1 to ¢5.73 whereas the Minister said he had no knowledge of payment under oath,” the report revealed.
The Committee, therefore, recommended that the Finance Ministry should retrieve the $2,850,000.00 (representing 50% of the contract sum of $5,700,000.00) paid to Messrs Al Maktoum.
Additionally, the Committee has presented the agreements entered into by the Ministry to the Public Procurement Authority for ratification.
