Accra, July 19, GNA - Mr Jacob Atule Adongo, a Director for Gender and Disability of the National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP) says the World Bank did not reject the tracier study conducted by Goodwill International Group (GIG), which Mr Philip Akpeena Assibit, is a representative.
“The tracier study was never rejected by the World Bank,” he added.
Mr Adongo was answering questions, as a defence witness in a cross-examination by the Mr Abu Juan, counsel for Mr Abuga Pele, the former National Coordinator of the, the Ghana Youth Employment and Entrepreneurial Development Agency (GYEEDA) who is also an accused person.
Mr Pele and Assibit has been charged with causing the loss of 41.1 million cedis to the state, Assibit is charged with putting in false claims to rip off the state.
The said in the project appraisal document the World Bank was on a comparative exercise to identify a consultant to execute the tracier study was done and that the consultant (GIG) executed that work.
The witness said in several meetings with Missions from the World Bank Mission from New York, expressed satisfaction with the tracier study and even indicated to the NYEP that they would do a model by model study when the pilot takes off.
The Counsel asked, whether, the service contract taken as a result of the raid in the NYEP office was to deny the accused persons access to their defence of which the witness replied “My Lord l agree with you, the raid of our office and documents taken away could be best described as a grand scheme by some state actors excluding the court to deny officialdom of the NYEP, very relevant documents to assist the court to the determination of the matter.”
“As indicated earlier, our documents indicating the service agreement are yet to be returned by EOCO,” he added.
When, Mrs Evelyn Keelson, Senior State Attorney during cross examination pointed out to the witness that apart from the MoU with NYEP and GIG, there was no other contract which would warrant payment to GIG.
The witness however disagreed with that assertion, saying no governmental agency would pay any amount without looking at a contract document signed and audited by internal auditors.
The State further suggested to the defence witness that the then Minister of Youth and Sports never signed the supposed contract agreement,
Mr Adongo said “Am not surprise, the Minister said that, even when he signed the payment plan and instructed his Chief Director to communicate to the NYEP, he still denied knowledge of any agreement, so am not surprised.”
He told the court that in his opinion, it was part of the grand mischief.
He said the Minister’s denial of knowledge of the contract was no excuse, because, even a day was enough for any government official in office to take responsibility for their actions and inactions and “I am not sure the Minister could be exonerate from this.”
Mr Pele and Mr Assibit are facing various charges of causing financial loss of 41.1 million Ghana Cedis to the State.
Assibit is being accused of putting in false claims that he had secured a 65-million-dollar World Bank funding for the creation of one million jobs for the youth, which led government to part with GH¢ 41.1 million.
On June 19, 2015 the Court ordered Philip and Pele to open their defence in respect of a GH¢41.1 million malfeasance case against them.
The order came after the Court had ruled that the State had established a prima facie case against the two, in respect of 19 counts of defrauding by false pretenses, abetment of crime, dishonesty and intentionally misapplying public funds and willfully causing financial loss to the State.
GNA
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