Think tanks, CSOs outraged over OSP ‘snail-paced’ action on scandals

Thinks tanks and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) feel disappointed that the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) is yet to act on petitions, regarding scandals that involved Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company (BOST) and two other private firms.

They claim that the sluggish pace with which the OSP is handling the request to investigate the sale of some 1.8million off-spec fuel to Movenpina and Zup Oil and other alleged scandals is worrying.

For instance, The Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) petitioned the OSP in 2018, in what it claims is a case of causing financial loss to the state at BOST, which the nation lost in excess of GHc30million in revenue when BOST decided to sell 1.8 million barrels of crude oil to BB Energy, an unlicensed company.

The losses, according to Duncan Amoah, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of COPEC, were recorded at every stage of the value chain from the sale of the crude, to fees for holding the rest of it.

Kofi Bentil, Vice President, IMANI Africa, lamented that “this is one of the things that’s disappointing about the Office of the Special Prosecutor, this is why we all fought for them to be put in place and it is not difficult for an investigation even within a year to determine all the facts to come to a certain conclusion.”

 Dr Oduro Osae, the Dean of Studies and Research at the Institute of Local Government Studies, said although he recognised attempt made to forestall recurrence of situation at BOST, the OSP had failed the citizenry.

Mr Amoah noted that the transaction which was undertaken in September 2017, followed a major scandal involving sale of five million litres of contaminated fuel to 38 unlicensed companies and did not understand why 1.8 million barrels of oil was sold when initial volume procured was two million barrels.

He indicated that following the removal of Alfred Obeng Boateng as CEO of BOST, his replacement, George Okley instituted a committee that investigated contaminated fuel saga and the committee in its report described the involvement of the former management of BOST in the incident as criminal.

However, Mr Amoah said the only action to have been taken by the OSP was a letter to the petitioner, acknowledging receipt of the petition and also a promise to act on contents of the petition.

-myjoyonline.com