The staff of Volta Hotel have revealed that they will soon present documents relating to the US$1.2 million dollar boat construction contract between the Volta Hotel, VRA and Onur Makina, a Turkish Engineering company before the newly established office of the Special Prosecutor for further investigations and prosecution of the offenders.
The staff of Volta Hotel expressed disgust at the President Akufo Addo led New Patriotic Party government for failing to sanction the officials of the Volta hotel and the Volta River Authority for causing 1.2 million dollar financial loss to the state.
The officials of VRA and Volta Hotel led by Alexander Torto , Director of Finance and Fred Bart Plange ,General Manager Volta Hotel signed a whopping 1.2 million united states dollars with Onur Makina a Turkish company , a project that was never completed but the entire sum paid to the contractor. The New Crusading Guide managed to intercept a copy of the contract signed between the Volta Hotel, Volta River Authority and the Turkish company, Onur Makina.
This is a “Turn Key” contract which required the contractor, Onur Makina to start and complete the entire boat construction project before it is fully paid. However these people from VRA ignored the contract terms and went ahead to fully pay the contract sum. After the payment was made to the Turkish firm, the Onur Makina refused to complete the project and abandoned it midway.
Contract copy
CONSTRUCTION AND DELIVERY OF 176 PASSENGER LEISURE PONTOON. NOTIFICATION OF AWARD AND LETTER OF ACCEPTANCE
We refer to your proposal for the supply of a 176 Passenger Leisure Pontoon to the Volta Hotel , and your subsequent letter dated February 8,2013, revising the payment terms and schedules. We are pleased to advise that VRA accepts your revised offer dated February 8, 2013.
The Volta Hotel is a limited liability company duly registered under the laws of Ghana. It is wholly owned by the Volta River Authority, a statutory corporation of Ghana. Although the contract to purchase the 176 passenger leisure Pontoon between Volta Hotel (the buyer) and Onur Makina (the seller), payment thereof shall be made by the Volt River Authority. Please take note that the details of the contract are as follows.
DESCRIPTION
Turn Key offer for the construction and delivery of 176 Passenger Leisure Pontoon
Duration- 7 months
Amount – US$1,260,000.00
The total contract price is one million two hundred and sixty thousand united states dollars – US$1,260,000.00. and payment shall be made as follows: US $175,000 out of the total contract sum at the end of the first month subject to the submission of the Bill of Lading covering the steel and supply materials as well as equipment’s for the construction of the boat.
US $175,000 out of the total contract sum at the end of month 2 following complete mobilization on site in Akosombo , Ghana by Onur Makina Sanji.
US $175,000 out of the total contract sum at the end of month 3 upon completion of laying of keel.
Former Chief Executive, Kirk Koffi, Alexander Torto, Director of Finance and Fred Bart-Plange, are the people behind the deal which has caused the nation a fortune at a time that Ghanaians find themselves in a very serious financial and power crisis.
The whole deal started when management of the hotel decided to construct a new boat to replace the Dodi Princess 1, which got burnt sometime back through some mysterious circumstances.
The Turkish company, Onur Makina that was contracted to build the new boat for the company, according to the source did a shoddy job by building an inferior boat which cannot even travel more than 300metres.
the contract which was expected to take up to seven months to complete had to be dragged for three years since some people were benefiting illegally from it.
The workers have indicated that their disappointment stem from the fact that the internal marine department of the VRA which built the Dodi Princess could have built the Dodi Princess 11 at a lesser cost but because of “some selfish gains” Kirk and Fred decided to award the contract to the Turks.
“The insurance policies for every contract awarded by the Volta Hotel are handled by the State Insurance Company Limited since time immemorial as it is owned by the Ghanaian taxpayer but in this case, it was awarded to MET Insurance Company for reasons best known to only Kirk and Fred,” the source stated.
Moreover, the New Crusading Guide was informed that the agreement between the Turkish Company has been kept away from the workers of the company and shrouded in secrecy
Buttressing his point, the source provided this paper with documents to prove that Fred Bart-Plange, the MD for the hotel, in one way or the other benefitted from signing the insurance contract with MET Insurance instead of SIC.
The New Crusading Guide learnt that, the Turkish are very angry with management of the facility for bringing a Ghanaian company, Bemmarine Services to check the boat and access whether it met international requirements.
