Attafuah breaks silence; chides Kennedy Agyepong over NIA contract

Criminologist and acting Executive Secretary of the National Identification Authority has broken his long silence over the controversial contract that appears to be tearing members of the New Patriotic Party apart.

Prof Ken Attafuah insists the allegations of wrong doing by Assin Central MP Kennedy Agyepong leveled against him and Communications Minister Ursula Owusu were not only baseless but untrue.

According to him contrary to claims by Agyepong that a new contract has been awarded under shady circumstances, the fact is no new contract was awarded.

Rather, the existing contract signed with Identity Management Systems in 2012 by the erstwhile NDC administration has been considered as robust and that the company is competent enough to deliver new IDs in one year to all Ghanaians.

He was reacting to the allegations of bribery levelled by Kennedy Agyepong.
The vociferous MP and a financier of the governing New Patriotic Party last week accused an unnamed staffer at the Flagstaff House of demanding $20,000 from an unnamed investor before allowing the person to see President Akufo-Addo.

He also accused the National Identification Authority (NIA) of collecting monies from foreign investors stating it disregarded his bid for a contract to print NIA cards in favour of more expensive bidders.

The accusations have since been a matter of investigation at the presidency. The issue was also a subject of discussion on Joy FM’s Newsfile programme, Saturday.

A member of the NDC and former Minister of Lands and Natural Resources Inusah Fuseini believes the contract for the issuance of the ID cards had been signed at the presidency and not at the NIA.

But the Executive Secretary of NIA Ken Attafuah called into the programme to set the record straight and to explain what he believes is a campaign of misinformation being waged by the Assin Central MP.

“In this instance NIA has not signed a contract, neither has the Akufo-Addo presidency or government signed a contract with margins or any company whatsoever.




“The NIA has not opened a bid for the National ID project.
“It has not received any bids or submissions from any person, entity or body whatsoever.

“Kennedy Agyepong has not has not submitted any bid to the NIA in respect of the National ID project.
“NIA has not evaluated any bid from any quarters at all in connection with this matter.

“What the government has decided to do following the report of a technical committee established by the vice president to advice government on what to do about the NIA is that government had determined that the existing contractual agreement between the NIA and Identity Management System which is a subsidiary of the Margins Group of companies for the production of ID cards to foreigners lawfully resident in this country constitute a viable framework for giving to the people of Ghana a robust, modern national smart card and identification system.

“Therefore the NIA should proceed with that arrangement with existed prior to the NPP coming into power,” he insisted.

He said the scope of agreement signed in 2012 with IMS is only being expanded under this new arrangement.
He said the technical committee which arrived at this decision had officials from DVLA, NIA, SSNIT and all those connected with identity management systems.

Kennedy Agyepong’s angle

Even though no bids were officially announced, advertised or taken, Ken Attafuah said 16 companies on their own volition met with technical committee to present proposal on how they think the ID card project can be done.

The Executive Secretary said the committee member gave each company a hearing, including the company Kennedy Agyepong had an interest in.
He said even before the committee would take a decision on the matter, the Assin Central MP was on air accusing him and Ursula Owusu of taking bribes to give the contract to another company even when he had submitted a much cheaper proposal.

The accusations notwithstanding, he said the technical committee advised that the existing contract with IMS be extended and that is exactly what has been done.

Source:Myjoyonline.com