Birim Central MCE denies allegations of awarding contracts to cronies

Ms Ophelia Koomson, the Birim Central Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), has denied allegations that she was awarding contracts to cronies.

Reacting to the allegations at a press conference at Akyem Oda on Monday, Ms Koomson said she rather needed to be commended for her tireless efforts to move the Municipality forward instead of being maligned.

Three polling station chairmen of the Akyem Oda Constituency are making the allegations against her.

According to her no person from Accra or the Central Region had been singled out for contracts, adding that the assertion that she was giving jobs to people from Central Region, where she hails from, is ethnocentric and only aimed at giving her a bad name in order to hang her.

“Tenders in the Assembly are openly done and any Ghanaian is at liberty to tender. Only people who have the capacity to deliver win contracts of the assembly”.

Ms Koomson indicated that some contracts like the Ghana Education Trust (GET-Fund) projects, electricity, road maintenance and rehabilitation were awarded from outside the Municipality, which she had no power to single-handedly award them to her favourites.

On Micro Finance and Small Loan Centre (MASLOC) loans, the MCE said she had no control in the disbursement of such loans, adding that there is a Secretariat with a Coordinator who manages activities there.

“It is therefore not true that I gave loans to my favourites. I am not in charge of MASLOC – the MASLOC Coordinator is the one who handles people’s request”.

Ms Koomson indicated that she had not turned down requests from rural communities in the provision of socio amenities and mentioned a number of development projects, especially schools under-trees, she had initiated since assuming office one and half years ago.

The projects included construction of six-unit classroom blocks each with ancillary facilities at Amantem Nkwanta Local Authority (L/A) Primary, Eshiem Islamic Primary, Osenho L/A primary and Kyeremase L/A primary schools.

Source: GNA