Waterville made different claims — Orlandi
A former Managing Director of Waterville Holdings Limited, Mr Andrea Orlandi, Wednesday told the Fast Track High Court that Alfred Agbesi Woyome, a businessman, made a distinct claim from those he made following the abrogation of a contract his company had with the government of Ghana.
The contract was in relation to the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the Ohene Djan, the Baba Yara and the El-Wak Sports stadia.
Mr Orlandi explained that while he made claims for works including the clearing of sites and procurement of materials, Woyome made further claims for financial engineering against the government of Ghana.
Mr Orlandi, the seventh prosecution witness, was answering questions during cross-examination by Mr Osafo Buabeng, counsel for Mr Woyome.
He admitted that on February 3, 2010 there was a meeting among the Attorney-General, Waterville and Woyome shortly after the termination of the contract.
He said during the meeting, the Attorney-General asked them to provide documentation on their claims, which they did.
It was after the meeting that the A-G said he understood their positions.
He also admitted writing a letter dated April 20, 2010 confirming Woyome’s claim. The letter was subsequently tendered in evidence.
Earlier, Mr Orlandi had told the court in his evidence-in-chief that after the government of Ghana had terminated Waterville’s contract in August 2006, the company did not accept the termination unless it was paid for the works it had done in Accra and Kumasi.
Led in evidence by a Chief State Attorney, Ms Cynthia Lamptey, he said the company was subsequently paid 25 million euros in 2011 for the work it did.
On November 25, 2006, he said, Waterville terminated a contract it had with M-Power Pack and paid that company 3.6 million euros.
When asked whether or not Waterville owed M-Power Pack, witness responded in the negative.
The case was adjourned to May 8, 2013.
The court was presided over by Mr Justice John Ajet–Nasam.
Woyome has been charged with two counts of wilfully causing financial loss to the state and defrauding by false pretence for allegedly putting in false representation to claim GH¢51.2 million from the government through a default judgement.
He has, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges and is currently on a GH¢20 million bail.
Six prosecution witnesses who have so far testified in the matter are a Deputy Head of the Legal Department of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MOFEP), Mrs Mangowa Ghanney; a former Minister of Finance, Mr Yaw Osafo-Maafo, and a former Deputy Minister of Finance, Mr Kwaku Agyemang-Manu.
The others are Ms Yvonne Quansah of the Financial Sector Division of MOFEP; Mr Lionel Vanlare Dosoo, a former Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, and the Director of Legal Affairs at the Public Procurement Authority (PPA), Mrs Lesley Duodu.
Source: Daily Graphic