KEY POINTS
- Kofi Tonto, political advisor to the late President John Mahama, called Mahama the “mafia” in connection to the Saglemi Housing Project.
- Only 1,513 out of 5,000 planned housing units were built under the project, raising questions about the remaining funds.
- The Saglemi Housing Project, funded by a $200 million loan from Credit Suisse, was launched in 2013 by John Mahama.
In reaction to attempts by those within the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to bring down the flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, Kofi Tonto, a political advisor to the late President John Mahama, has called Mahama the mafia.
Kofi Tonto brought up the Saglemi Housing Project, which was initiated in 2012 by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) led by John Mahama, in an interview that was broadcast on GhOne TV, which mynewsghana was watching. Kofi Tonto called John Mahama the head of corruption in relation to the Saglemi project.
$200 million credit Suisse loan questioned in housing project
“This man approached us and announced his intention to construct a $10 billion township in Ghana. What became of STX, including the Saglemi? Credit Suisse gave John Mahama $200 million so he could construct 5,000 homes.
“But instead of building 5,000 dwellings, just 1,513 were built. Where is the remaining cash? He charged, “John Mahama is the head of corruption.” Reportedly, the goal of this initiative was to reduce Ghana’s shortage of housing.
After the project was approved by the Ghanaian Parliament on October 13, 2012, in compliance with Article 181(1) of the Ghanaian Constitution of 1992, Credit Suisse provided funding for it.
On January 4, 2013, Collins Dauda, the former Minister of Water Resources, Works, and Housing at the time, and Construtora OAS Ghana Limited, represented by Clocanas, signed the Engineering Procurement and Construction Agreement.
This was the first step towards a facility agreement between the borrower and lender, the Ministry of Finance, for the release of $200 million to fund the construction of the 5,000 housing units.
In November 2013, the first phase of the Housing Project was officially launched by former President John Mahama, who referred to it as the most ambitious housing project in the West African sub-region.
