Wed. Oct 9th, 2024

REJOINDER: SUMMARY OF PARLIAMENTARY OVERSIGHT CONDUCTED BY HON. SAMUEL OKUDZETO ABLAKWA (MP FOR NORTH TONGU AND RANKING MEMBER, FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE)

image 11
REJOINDER: SUMMARY OF PARLIAMENTARY OVERSIGHT CONDUCTED BY HON. SAMUEL OKUDZETO ABLAKWA (MP FOR NORTH TONGU AND RANKING MEMBER, FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE) 3

The attention of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration has been drawn to a statement authored by Hon. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, MP for North Tongu, which claims that the cost of the 100-year-old 6-bedroom house in Oslo, being considered for use as Ghana’s chancery, was inflated1. Ablakwa alleged that the property was initially purchased by a certain woman for US$2.9 million in 2014 and later sold to an unknown buyer for US$3.5 million in August 2017.

In response, the Ministry categorically refutes these claims and provides the following facts:

  1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not signed any agreement to purchase the said properties (the Chancery and the Ambassador’s Residence).
  2. The Ministry expressed interest in two properties in Oslo and, in accordance with the Public Procurement Act, commenced due diligence on the properties with the assistance of a property valuer and a reputable lawyer specializing in property acquisition for diplomatic missions.
  3. As of now, the Ministry has not entered into any binding agreement with the owners of the properties.
  4. No payment has been made towards the purchase of the properties, ensuring that there has been no financial loss to the State.
  5. The Ministry strongly rejects the unfounded claims made by the Ranking Member of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudjeto Ablakwa, and a section of the Minority, which seek to give the erroneous impression that the Ministry engaged in fraudulent transactions with the property owners.
  6. Such uninformed allegations and hasty judgments involving a Diplomatic Mission could damage not only the image of the country but also jeopardize relations between Ghana and Norway.

Thanks for reading from countryghana.com, a news publishing website from Ghana. You are free to share this story via the various social media platforms and follow us on; FacebookTwitterInstagram etc.

Kindly submit your news stories to  officialcountryghana@gmail.com

Adobe Express 20220719 0650300.33975172258300734 1
REJOINDER: SUMMARY OF PARLIAMENTARY OVERSIGHT CONDUCTED BY HON. SAMUEL OKUDZETO ABLAKWA (MP FOR NORTH TONGU AND RANKING MEMBER, FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE) 4

Related Post