‘Rawlings and Mills would have answered some questions if they were alive’ – Captain Smart
Blessed Godsbrain Smart has wished late former Presidents Jerry John Rawlings and Prof. John Evans Atta Mills were alive to answer some questions on a power barge they procured to supplement electricity supply.
Captain Smart, host of ‘Maakye’ on Onua TV/FM says the $673 million Power Plant Barge at Ofaso near Axim in the Western Region has been left to rot despite the money invested into it.
The plant, procured by president Rawlings was to curb the incessant lower voltage that confronted residents of Axim and its environs.
Then head of the Ghana National Petroleum Council (GNPC), Tsatsu Tsikata, after discovering crude in the region asked President Rawlings to increase the power generation in the area, to be able to sustain the increasing demand that will arise, saying Ghana could be drilling oil in commercial quantities in the coming years.
This was after an Nzema chief had already reported to president Rawlings of the activities of witches that were causing the power outages in the area.
In August 1996, Captain Smart averred Ghana secured a contract with an Italian company to put the plant to form but “I’m sad Rawlings and Mills are no more, like I have a lot of questions for them because the barge never arrived till Prof. Mills lost the 2000 elections to Kufuor.”
In October 2002, he said Kufuor asked of the remaining amount needed to secure the barge when he had to rush back to a cabinet meeting from London for the project to continue.
Explaining further, he noted the barge came to Ghana in November 2004 but couldn’t be fixed because a wrong excavation had been made for it.
“The hole they dug was round but the plant was square and the Italians were demanding over $80m to dig a square hole to replace the round one when they were asked to do it,” Smart stated.
In June 2008, the 125MW barge was fixed after the 65 feet square hole was dug.
The plant, whose value according to Captain Smart includes an arbitration cost under Prof. Mill’s era and an administrative office of $7m and $24m respectively is rotting away in the bush.
The controversial presenter is questioning the essence of Ghanaian leaders putting up a structure with a loan facility and leave it to rot.
Meanwhile, he has pleaded with the IGP Dr. George Akuffo Dampare to release some policemen who were interdicted for stealing some materials from the edifice whilst securing the property.
“At a point, the police taking care of the place were those taking the spare parts to sell. In 2019, four police officers were interdicted. One of the them shot himself when he was caught.”
“Dampare, if those officers interdicted for stealing the parts have not been released, please release them because our leaders are fools. If they were wise, they wouldn’t leave the plant to waste away,” he pleaded.
Mr. Smart further dared the NPP communicators to come and rubbish the report just as they tried with the Afari Military Hospital in the Ashanti Region.
