By Emelia Nkrumah
Accra, Oct. 20, GNA – The New Ghana Social Justice Forum, a Civil Society Organisation, has called for the dissolution of the Board of the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company Limited (BOST) and the prosecution of top officials of the Company.
The Forum on Thursday organised a demonstration at the forecourt of BOST and the National Petroleum Authority Head Offices to press their demands following reports that the Board had bought iPhones for its members and directors of the Company to aid their work.
In a petition, the Forum said, “the Auditor General’s report found that the Board Chairman of BOST, Mr Ekow Hackman,
also allegedly created three companies to compete with himself to win BOST contracts. Ghana was scammed.”
The protest was to demand transparency and accountability from the Board Chairman of BOST.
Addressing the media after the protest, Mr Yahaya Alhassan, President, GSJF, called on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to dissolve the Board of Directors of BOST immediately to protect the public purse.
“Ghana is wild with corruption; the Energy Ministry is an industry of corruption. We are calling on all to join this campaign for the prosecution of all BOST top officials and for the dissolution of BOST Board members,” he said.
He said, “we are calling on President Akufo-Addo, but what is clear is that the BOST Board members are not in
existence. Even though they are here, Ghanaians do not want them, they should be prosecuted as soon as possible.”
In response to the allegations, Mr Moses Mensah Asem, the Deputy Managing Director of BOST, described the allegations as baseless.
He emphasised that the Company’s financial accounts had undergone thorough audit by the Auditor General, and no evidence of such irregularities was found.
Nevertheless, Mr Asem assured the protesting group that the concerns raised would undergo a comprehensive and transparent investigation.
At the NPA, the petition was received by the Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Mr Parry Okudzeto.
GNA