VALCO Trust Fund Acting CEO Under Probe For Suspected Corruption In Ghc3.5bn Charity Project

The acting CEO of the Trust Fund belonging to the Volta Aluminum Company (VALCO), Mr. Kelvin Yeboah, is reportedly under probe by both the National Investigation Bureau (NIB) and the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP).

The probe is said to be in connection with suspected malfeasance in the Trust Fund’s Ghc3.5 billion charity project to eliminate schools under trees in Ghana.

The NIB is said to have since granted him bail in connection with several issues including disregard for procurement thresholds.

Among others, he is alleged to have blown Ghc190, 000 on photo-shoot, splurged Ghc17,000 on a website to track schools under trees, spent Ghc250,000 on publicity for Schools under trees and Ghc175,000 for a breakfast meeting with 20 people.

The NIB is also said to be investigating him over suspicion that on 15th November 2021 he attempted to change signatories to the VALCO Trust Fund Bank Account in order to make himself the sole signatory.

He is said to have fired staff who resisted the move.

The OSP on the other hand is probing the details of the Ghc3.5billion project to eliminate schools under trees by constructing school blocks across 15 regions in the country.

In the details of the brow-raising contracts, he is said to have awarded 18 contracts to one particular company under sole-sourcing.

The VALCO Trust Fund is the charity wing of aluminium smelting company and has been without a board for some years now.

The VALCO Trust Fund, in 2020 launched the project to eliminate schools under trees in the country and planned to construct 5,403 schools in the space of five years

Mr. Kelvin Yeboah cut the sod for the start of the project at Karaga in the Northern Region for the initial construction of some eighteen schools.

Fifteen of the schools have been built but the project has since been embroiled in scandal.