A Kumasi-based investor, Freda Darko, has slapped Samuel Sarpong, Chief Executive of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA), with a court writ that prevents him from tampering with a five-year multi-million cedi contract she has with the assembly.
KMA sources say Freda Darko, in 2010, was awarded a five-year contract to operate and manage the Kumasi Kejetia terminal, adding that though her contract ends in 2015, Samuel Sarpong planned to terminate the agreement this week for inexplicable reasons, if not for the court writ slapped on him.
According to the writ sighted by DAILY GUIDE, Freko F.D. Enterprise Limited was selected and awarded the task to operate the Kejetia terminal after it competitively bid for the contract with seven other companies.
It said Mr. Sarpong waited for the company to invest several millions of Ghana cedis into the contract and employ some 400 persons as workers, after which he started to make moves to abrogate the contract.
The writ noted that though the company had made investments in the area of security by installing over 200 CCTV cameras, monitoring towers, security gadgets, as well as purchasing security vehicles, motor rollers, among others, Samuel Sarpong, for reasons best known to him, was working towards abrogating the contract.
The writ said Freko F.D. Enterprise had employed some 400 workers, and in the area of sanitation it had acquired a fleet of sewerage trucks, trucks for refuse collection and engaged the services of horticulturalists to beautify gardens within the terminal.
It said before Mr. Sarpong was appointed Chief Executive of KMA, he was the Ashanti Regional Director of the then Serious Fraud Office (SFO) and at that time, he did not hide his dislike and resentment for Madam Darko and her company.
It accused Mr. Sarpong of using his office to pursue his personal vendetta against Madam Darko and her company.
The writ said though Mr. Sarpong had alleged that the Public Accounts Committee had recommended, at its regional sitting in 2010, that Madam Darko�s contract should be declared null and void because the procurement processes were not followed, minutes of the said regional meeting showed that the committee never made such recommendations.
It said Mr. Sarpong, in pursuit of his agenda, had also caused several news publications against the person and reputation of Madam Darko and her company, just so he could pollute the mind of the public against her.
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