West Blue Ghana has sued the Attorney-General (AG) and the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) for non-payment of over GHc289 million in arrears for work done under the National Single Window and Integrated Risk Management System contract executed in August 2015.
In a suit filed at an Accra High Court on yesterday, West Blue (Plaintiff) is requesting the court to order the Attorney-General (1st defendant) and the Ghana Revenue Authority (2nd defendant) to make full payment of the outstanding fees due it for services rendered.
According to West Blue, it decided to go to court because all attempts to recover the outstanding debts, including various correspondence through its lawyers Bentsi-Enchill, Letsa and Ankomah (BELA) and Africa Legal Associates (ALA) to the Ministry of Finance and the 2nd Defendant (GRA) have been unsuccessful, as the Defendants, without any lawful basis, have remained adamant on their position that all payment obligations owed the Plaintiff (West Blue) have been discharged.
The outstanding fees were occasioned as a result of the government’s (Finance Ministry and GRA) failure to pay West Blue the full Contract price (from 2015 to 2020) fee which is a fixed percentage of the final invoice CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight) value of import consignments entering into Ghana through the seaports, airports, and land borders.
Under West Blue’s contract with the Government of Ghana, acting through the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and the GRA for the provision of the National Single Window and Integrated Risk Management System (“NSW Contract”), the IT company was to be paid a Contract Price that is a fee equivalent to 0.35% (zero point three five per centum) of the final invoice CIF (Cost, Insurance and Freight) value of import consignments entering into Ghana through the seaports, airports, and land borders from time to time.
The former deputy finance Minister, Kwaku Kwarteng in a letter dated Jan 25, 2018, February 4, 2019, and March 14, 2019, respectively alluded to West Blue’s contract price of 0.35% and subsequently reduced to 0.28% of the final invoice CIF value of all imports.
In letters signed on behalf of the Minister dated June 11, and July 17, 2020, respectively by Mangowa Ghanney, Director, Legal at the Ministry of Finance, who in 2015 drafted and oversaw the execution of the Government of Ghana contract with West Blue, confirmed that West Blue’s payment was a fixed percentage of the final invoice CIF of all imports.
However, the government, since 2015 till the contract was ended in 2020 has failed to pay West Blue the full amount of the fixed percentage of the final invoice CIF value of import consignments entering Ghana through the seaports, airports, and land borders from time to time.
Breakdown of Arrears owed West Blue
West Blue in the suit filed at the high court is claiming against the A-G and GRA jointly and severally as follows:
“Recovery of the sum of One Hundred and Forty-Nine Million, Three Hundred and Fifty-Seven Thousand, Six Hundred and Ninety-Two Ghana Cedis, Seventy-One Pesewas (GHS149,357,692.71), being the outstanding fees payable to the Plaintiff (West Blue) for services rendered to the Ministry of Finance and the 2nd Defendant (GRA) under the contract dated 4th August 2015 for the provision of the National Single Window and Integrated Risk Management System (“NSW Contract”) from September 2015 to September 2017, at an applicable rate of 0.35% of the final invoice CIF value of import consignments entering into Ghana through the seaports, airports and land borders.
“Recovery of the sum of Seventy-Six Million, Ninety-Seven Thousand, Nine Hundred and Seventeen Ghana Cedis, Fifty-Eight Pesewas (GHS76,097,917.58), being the outstanding fees payable to the Plaintiff for services rendered to the Ministry of Finance and the 2nd Defendant under the NSW Contract from October 2017 to 31st December 2018, at an applicable rate of 0.28% of the final invoice CIF value of import consignments entering into Ghana through the seaports, airports and land borders.
“Recovery of the sum of Sixty-Four Million, Ninety-Two Thousand, Two Hundred and Fifteen Ghana Cedis, Seven Pesewas (GHS64,092,215.07), being the outstanding fees payable to the Plaintiff for services rendered to the Ministry of Finance and the 2nd Defendant from 1st January 2019 to May 2020 at an applicable rate of 0.28% of the final invoice CIF value of import consignments entering into Ghana through the seaports, airports and land borders”.
Recovery of Equipment
West Blue is also claiming the recovery of the equipment it procured to perform its obligations under the NSW Contract and the additional services it rendered from 1st January 2019 to May 2020 at the request of the Ministry of Finance and 2nd Defendant, which the Defendants have retained.
“…or in alternative recovery of an amount of Four Hundred and Twenty-Five Thousand United States Dollars (US$425,000.00) being the value of the equipment it procured to perform its obligations under the NSW Contract and the additional services it rendered from 1st January 2019 to May 2020, which the Defendants have retained”.
