A High Court in Tamale yesterday granted bail of GH¢2 million with three sureties each, to the four accused persons standing trial in the case of the Northern Development Authority (NDA) procurement breaches revealed in the Special Prosecutor’s investigative report.
There was drama however, when the 1st accused, Chief Executive Officer of the Northern Development Authority (NDA), Sumaila Abdul Rahman, told the court he had an official duty outside Ghana on behalf of his outfit despite his ongoing case of corruption at the High Court of Ghana.
The Court barred Sumaila Abdul Rahman, from travelling outside Ghana until he produced his passport after two weeks.
All the accused persons are to justify the conditions by providing documents covering landed properties worth 500,000 thousand cedis at the registry, with an undertaking that such properties are free from challenges.
The court presided over by Justice Eric Ansah Ankomah ordered the prosecutor to file all documents she intends to rely on at the registry of the court. She is further ordered to file her witness statement of her witness within the same period of three weeks from the adjourned date.
The Deputy Special Prosecutor, Jane Cynthia Naa Korshie Lamptey was in court during the proceedings.
Meanwhile, the case has been adjourned to February 28 for the case management conference to commence.
The four accused persons were charged with six counts including a joint count of conspiracy to commit the criminal offence of directly or indirectly influencing the procurement process to obtain an unfair advantage in the award of a procurement.
The accused persons, namely Sumaila Abdul Rahman the NDA CEO, two of his deputies, Stephen Yireru and Patrick Seidu, and the CEO of A&Qs Consortium, Andrew Kuundaari all pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Even though the prosecution did not oppose the bail, she prayed the court to seize the passports of the accused persons.
The criminal prosecution of the four follows a directive by the office of the special prosecutor after an investigation was conducted into suspected corruption and corruption-related offences at the northern development authority.
This was in relation to a contract awarded to a consultancy company, A&Qs consortium under the Infrastructure for the poverty eradication programme.
The complaint which was filed by a private legal practitioner, Martin Kpebu accused the chief executive officer of the NDA, Sumaila Abdul Rahman and two of his deputies, Stephen Yireru and Patrick Seidu of procurement breaches.
The report by the OSP revealed that the actions of the four, directly and indirectly, influenced the procurement breaches.
The report added that the initial contract sum of five million seven hundred and twenty thousand cedis was illegally increased by four million six hundred and eighty thousand cedis, amounting to a total of Ten million four hundred thousand cedis without following the due process.
The action of the four according to the OSP offered an unfair advantage to the A&Qs consortium.
