The umbrella body for private sector interest in the country, the Private Enterprise Federation is the latest to push for the BOST-TSL contract to be terminated. 

Information and Media Relations Minister, Mahama Ayariga justified the decision by the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company to contract out the management of its petroleum storage facilities within the Accra Plains Depot to TSL Logistics Ghana Limited, a subsidiary of a Nigerian Company.

According to him, local companies were given the opportunity to bid for the contract but just failed to take advantage of it.

The Ghana Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors has however dismissed this insisting local industry has better capacity to execute it to the country’s economic advantage.

Meanwhile, PEF says the contract as it stands now is unlawful and only amounts to financial loss to the state.

The CEO, Nana Osei Bonsu told JOY BUSINESS their concerns are rooted in the sheer disregard for the country’s local content agenda.

“Our concerns are that the local content that being preached is not being followed here and the Procurement Act which calls for setting performance of statutory institutions were not followed.

“Also, the president’s recent initiatives or emphasis on patronage of locally made goods are the areas we think that the activity is definitely illegal, is neither in line with the president’s vision nor the local content policies and processes that are being preached. So if there is anything for causing financial loss, this is one of the areas.

“Furthermore, the fact that when government preaches one side and the state institutions are doing things on the other side, what’s the reconciliation of the things you want to do? So private sector is sitting down, having the expertise, being disregarded and every time, state institutions are going to be turned over to foreign institutions”

He adds that the PEF just want the relevant laws to be duly enforced.  

 “The rules are there for everybody and were put together by government. So government has to follow them. We are asking the minister to look and alert to the requirements under the Procurement Act and to do the correct thing.

“We are all individuals and people, if we make mistakes, we should come up to a place and say we make mistakes and correct them. We cannot hide behind anything and say that now that we’ve signed the contract if we abrogate it, there is a possibility of judgment debt.  Then those people who disregarded the procurement act should bear the responsibility if there is any judgment debt,” he said.