The controversy surrounding the sale of telecommunicationsgiant Ghana Telecom takes a dramatic twist Tuesday as parliament reconvenes todebate and ratify the sale proposed by President John Kufuor's government. SomeGhanaians are expressing strong opposition to the sale of Ghana Telecom, whichhas reportedly led to a lawsuit seeking to prevent President Kufuor'sgovernment from selling Ghana Telecom to the British-based company Vodafone.Also Tuesday, the Committee for Joint Action (CJA), a political pressure group,is organizing a demonstration in parliament against the sale of Ghana Telecom.
Thegroup is accusing the government of failing fully to disclose details of thesale, adding that it has reasons to believe that relatives of top governmentofficials would benefit from the transaction. But President Kufuor's governmentdenies the accusations, saying it needs to raise funds to inject into aneconomy that it claims is experiencing unexpected shocks because of rising fueland food prices.
FromGhana's capital, CJA leading member Kwesi Pratt tells reporter Peter Clotteythat the government has not been transparent to Ghanaians.
"Weare massing up this morning in front of parliament house and we are going tomake the point that the sale of 70% of Ghana Telecom shares to Vodafone isinimical to the interest of the people of Ghana. And we would also be demandingfull disclosure of the transaction," Pratt pointed out.
Hesaid the group would go ahead and press home its demand for disclosure of thedeal, although it has limited options if President Kufuor's government decidesnot to heed to its demands.
"Thereis very little that we can do about that. But if the government does that anduses its majority to bulldoze its way, it would send a very clear signal to theGhanaian electorate. It would make a statement about itself that it is notready to consider the relevant issues and that it would stick to party partisanposition, which would be most unfortunate. And it is important for thegovernment to realize that this is an election year and the people of Ghana arelistening and watching," he said.
Prattsaid there is need for transparency and a thorough investigation into practicesat Vodafone.
"Firstof all there hasn't been a full disclosure, and there is some evidence thatVodafone practices in such matters have not been wholesome. Vodafone bought 30%shares of Safaricom in Kenya, and the Kenyan Public Investment Committee ofparliament investigated the deal and what it came up with was sordid. As wespeak, Vodafone is before a court in India answering charges of tax evasion andso on. So, it is important for us to find out if Vodafone practices in Ghanawould be different from practices in other countries like Kenya, like India andelsewhere," Pratt noted.
Hedescribed as inopportune the secrecy coursing the sale of Ghana Telecom.
"Clearly,the government has not been telling us the whole truth about the transaction. Acouple of days after this matter became public and we raised concerns about itand even without parliamentary approval, personnel of Vodafone went to GhanaTelecom and had a meeting with the workers, which suggested that they hadalready taken over. When we raised those issues, the government reaction wasthat Vodafone staff were carrying out due diligence. But our position is thatif they were now telling us due diligence, then how did they come to the conclusionthat the company's 70% shares are worth $900 million? Because it was duediligence, which ought to have established the price of the company. So it isclear that the government is not telling us the whole truth about thistransaction," he pointed out.