Anti-corruption campaigner Edem Senanu has called for a thorough investigation and potential prosecution of those responsible for the Ghana Football Association’s (GFA) bus scandal.
A Joy Sports investigation revealed that the GFA awarded a GHC5.1 million contract to its Chief of Staff, Michael Osekere, for a bus initiative intended for Division One and Women’s Premier League clubs, creating a clear conflict of interest.
The GFA distributed nine buses to Division One clubs in November, but these vehicles have been described as “16-year-old death traps” by former GHALCA Chairman J.Y. Appiah.
The buses remain unregistered, and some clubs have been asked to return them. The reported cost of over GHC500,000 per bus has been deemed excessive.
Senanu emphasized the need for a competitive bidding process. “It spells fraud. That’s what we call corruption. I mean, when you’ve been entrusted with responsibility, and there have been clear efforts to manipulate the process for your benefit or those around you.”
He added, “If something has been reported, misreported, or underreported regarding the actual age and yet assigned a cost it does not have, that is corruption. There is also an administrative process stating that when something exceeds a certain ceiling, it should go through an open tender. That was not followed. If the facts are available, they must be reported so investigative agencies can take over. Persons must be held accountable because this is an attempt to defraud the state of resources that are already scarce for many essential needs.”
Documents indicate the GFA acquired the buses through sole-sourcing from Freightgistics Ghana Company Ltd, directed by Michael Osekere, raising concerns about a conflict of interest. Freightgistics handled the clearance of vehicles procured from World Trade Co. Ltd in Korea.
