The past few weeks have witnessed a lot of concerns raised about the abysswe are gradually sinking into as a country — former president Paapa J, the CJ, the Paramount Chief of Esikado, Martin Amidu, Alban Bagbin and many more individuals complain across this dear nation of ours as observed very recently  by the Otumfuo Osei Tutu, the Asantehene.

Let me also add my small thoughts to help the President deal with this issue: Did I hear Mr. Gyan the NDC National Organiser say that the Paramount Chief of Esikado should not meddle in politics?

Well I think that when we reach the cross-roads as it looks like we have done then chiefs should aid the president and the people at large for Ghana is bleeding into the pockets of a few fiendish crooks (Mr. Gyan should be thought the principal effects of the actions of Mr. Theodore Taylor better known as Nii Kwabena Bonney III, Osu Alata Mantse and AWAM. Nii Bonney ought to be celebrated better).

Now to the Budget Season and looting brigade processes. In about 2 decades or less ago there was ISODEC which led the crusade to scrutinize our budgets in order to counter any draconian decisions emanating from the Bretton Woods institutions in the era of the World Bank/IMF adjustment programmes of divestiture and privatization.

The World Bank with its global reach, experiences and tentacles has a way of engulfing such local "nuisances" to its policies and today ISODEC is comfortable working and Bishop Akologo is pals with World Bank and IMF staff.

With the creation of Public-Private-Partnership Infrastructure Advisory (PPIAF) of the World Bank, there is little agitation these days against Public-Private-Partnerships because ideologues of public interest are satisfied with the "public" in such partnership arrangements with the private sector. But these arrangements can be abused wantonly if private monopolies are created and there is poor institutional supervision as demonstrated in the GYEEDA cases.

It happens because the "smart" private sector operators (and I do not mean all of them but the very unscrupulous ones, as has emerged on the Ghanaian scene recently) are able to use the dexterity and all the advantages of being "private" to virtually control how public funds are expended on government planned programmes while receiving accolades.

For example let us see the first of the companies (or are these projects?) listed in the Daily Guide (Page 20) of Wednesday, October 30, 2013 “Here, there, Everywhere Corruption".

 a. Who owns the Accra Compost and Recycling Company?

b. How much did it cost to build the plant?

c. How much of Government funds has been paid to this project? by which means were funds allocated and released to the project?

d. Did Ministry of Finance make direct payments to the project or from the Ministry concerned? Ministry of Environment Science and Technology or that of the Local Government? (The Ministry of Finance, those of Environment and Local Government should give Ghanaians some answers.)

e. What due diligence was done regarding cost of the project and how it is to be managed to avoid burdening government with downstream operation costs?

f. Who is managing the plant? And at what cost to the state of Ghana?

g. There was a recent TV show of export of recyclables from the plant - so how much does these sales bring to the owners of the plant?

h. What is the current cost to Government of managing the plant by the operator? Why? What was the initial agreement ? build-operate- transfer? (The operator Zoomlion should provide details on these).

So the Ghanaian version of PPP by these corrupt individuals and companies go like this;

(1) With slush funds accumulated from other government funded projects (like NYEP aka GYEEDA) initiate project with private funds (or with borrowing of funds from banks with the hefty balances and good standing of inflows and proposed government contracts).

So for the compost plant example (1) Zoomlion acquires the land and then starts construction very quickly to almost completion.

(2) work through a Ministry (in this case Ministry of Environment, Dr Omane A Boamah was the link man), to make sure that a budget line is provided for the project, in this case Ministry of Local Government has a plan for building compost and recycling plants)

(3) ensure Parliamentary approval of the Ministry's budget to include the budget item covering the targeted project. Visit parliament with "envelopes" or get them together to visit the impressively constructed plant or project and afterwards treat them to ”lunch".

(4) "whip" some greedy bastards at the Finance ministry in line by making"huge personal donations" from the slush fund and get them to write to the ministries concerned for direct payment of the budgeted funds to the private entity so the ministries have budgeted for the project but they receive funds minus this already programmed budget items which goes to the private entity in the PPP.

(5) Now get back to a related Ministry (if construction started with MESTI facilitation then shift to the MLG) to give a management contract for the same facility since it is to help receive refuse and thereby improving good health of Ghanaians. Very soon the fees if unpaid build up to become "fat slush fund" yet to be paid! The agents here are the Ministers themselves (previous Ofosu Ampofo and now Oppong-Fosu who is seen commissioning projects here and there with the CEO of Zoomliom).

How does the Procurement Authority assist the process of Budget Looting? Check the testimony of ASP Edward Odame Okyere to the Judgement Debt Commisson concerning Woyome's company not being registered at the Registrar Generals Department and the fact that no bidding took place - because it was decided to sole source by the NPP Administration.

So what is the modus operandi of the Budget Looting Brigade in these times?

a. Advertise and start a bidding process by publishing it in the local newspapers.

b. Write to the National Procurement Authority to sole source one of the bidders who does not necessarily have the lowest quote nor the best solution for the project in question.

c. Set aside the process of the advertised procurement notice for after all local companies will only grumble and let sleeping dogs lie for fear of being victimized. And after all "the procurement entity is not required during the bidding process entitled to accept any of the bids" anyway.

d. After procurement authority approval of sole sourcing at about twice the quoted offer of what perhaps the more competent bidders will offer, the cycle of PPP kicks in as enumerated (1) to (5) above.

What is the blessing role of the World Bank? With PPP coming from its  stables as a good example in line with the World Bank's PPIAF program then all is well so far as it is PPP and the private entity is touted as a champion of industry.

And of the Development Partners? For example a visit to the Accra compost plant by Ambassadors on duty tour and get newspaper splash of the event and voila the private company is touted all over the globe. In this instance the Dutch Embassy has done a lot of publicity for Zoomlion.

So what should all meaning Ghanaians support and expect?

a) There is need for ISODEC type of an institution to scrutinize past budgets (2008 — 2013) and new budget proposals and subsequently how these funds are allocated directly to private entities by the Ministry of Finance.

b) All activities of such sleazy operatives pushing for sole sourcing of PPPs should be thoroughly investigated. Starting point should be the current register of sole sourced projects at the Procurement Authority, especially waste management projects by municipal assemblies, tracking those purported to be financed by private entities like Zoomlion and its affiliates.

Other tit-bits ? The Mayor of Accra should be sacked immediately if he was on air, Joy FM saying that City and Country Waste's contract was terminated and "fortunateIy" the company secured a judgement in its favor. What is fortunate about a company seeking to auction AMA’s properties?

Why did President Rawlings attend the Club 100 event and handover the plaque for award to RLG for being the first of Club 100 to RLg while the company is under investigation for sleazy deals under GYEEDA? When I saw the picture I cringed and exclaimed ”awo maawu, Yevu Paapa J ele comprised lo"!!

When President Rawlings complained of the President surrounding himself with corrupt persons who will use a dispatch rider even when going to the toilet, we wondered. But why should a private individual have a police escort at his beck and call 24 hours? Why should the CEO of Zoomlion have a police dispatch rider parked in his compound all the time and available for his use even on weekends? The police hierarchy should give us some answers.

We do need private funds to support keeping our cities clean but not as a means of stealing state funds. Even as we speak they are at work, check out the present Government announcement to support private institutions and how it has coincided with whole centre spread advertisement of Zoomlion's so called Africa KNUST Centre for Sanitation and Waste Management and one wonders whether government budget will be used to sponsor students to attend this private institution and at what cost?

After all improving the skills of health assistants is critical so they can be paid by government and supervised by Zoomlion under GYEEDA.