Ghanaian businessman, Alfred Agbesi Woyome, has suddenly spoken up from a hiatus that he seemed to have imposed on himself, after the State confiscated his assets over the judgment debt, he received in relation to the CAN 2008 stadia contracts abrogation.
In a rare incursion into public discourse, Woyome, is calling out journalist and lawyer, Sampson Lardy Anyenini, a “hypocrite” over Lawyer Anyenini’s somewhat sympathetic tone towards Strategic Mobilization Limited (SML), which had a so-called revenue assurance contract with government scaled down after it emerged that the contract was a dirty sweetheart deal.
According to Woyome, the basis on which the SML c ontract is being canceled, is the same as the legal technicalities that the government used to harass him, however, while a “hypocrite” Samson Anyenini sided with the government against him, he is now sympathizing with SML.
“I heard, @Samson Lardy Anyenini, on Joy 99.7 FM say Government not sending the SML Contract to Parliament for Approval is not the FAULT of SML. In essence he is saying SML and its Directors have no constitutional mandate or obligation to send contracts to Parliament for Approval (even before executing same).
“I must state that I agree with him 100 percent, because I have always argued that no Contractor or Businessman has the power to perform any Constitutional, Legal or Regulatory duties/functions of Ministers or Public Officials.
According to him, “My concern is the shameless hypocrisy, double standard, dishonesty, shallowness and unprincipled mature of people like Samson Lardy Anyenini,” Mr Woyome wrote in post on social media.
The hypocrisy stem from the fact that, Samson Lardy and his likes, made all the noise, and publicly crucified Waterville BVI and Mr Alfred Agbesi Woyome, because a certain CAN 2008 Contract between Government of Ghana and Waterville BVI was not sent to Parliament for Approval.”
It would be recalled that, between 2017 and 2020, the Akufo-Addo government, had hounded Mr Woyome for a refund of Gh¢51million judgment debt that he had been paid by the State over the abrogation of a contract with Waterville BVI, a construction company that Woyome, had done financial engineering for, after it won a contract to build stadia for Ghana to host the CAN 2008 football tournament.
That harassment had been on the basis of a 2014 judgment that had been passed by the Supreme Court, declaring that Woyome, was not entitled to the money, because the Waterville contract through which Woyome demanded the payment for financial engineering services was illegal, since it had not been approved by Parliament.
As part of his defense, Mr Woyome and his lawyers, had argued that the responsibility for seeking parliamentary approval lies with the government and not himself or Waterville, however, the court had dismissed that argument.
However, in respect of the so-called revenue assurance contract which President Akufo-Addo, directed that it should be varied, after it emerged that SML, which is reportedly connected to people within government, had been awarded the contract without parliamentary approval, Sampson Lardy Anyenini, is said to have commented that SML, should not be blamed for that omission.
“How come Samson Lardy Anyenini believe and blame Waterville/Woyome for not seeking Parliamentary Approval, but accepts that SML cannot be faulted or blamed for their contract not going to Parliament for Approval?” Mr. Woyome asked.
According to him, “It was on the basis of the said void contract (as determined by the Supreme Court) that the Supreme Court ordered Mr. Alfred Agbesi Woyome to the State even though he was in no form of shape linked to the 2006 Contract between GoG and Waterville BVI. In fact, Mr. Alfred Agbesi Woyome’s claim for which he got a default judgment was for services he rendered to GoG in 2005, and NOTHING in relation to the supppsed 2006 Contract.”