A former board Chairman of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) Professor Joshua Alabi has said that the $66 million dollar contract to procure an IT software for the Trust was not sanctioned by his administration.
Prof Alabi in an interview with Accra-based Citi FM said the contract was signed before he was appointed. He also added that the contract had clauses that literally prevented his board from reviewing it.
“What really happened was that…management went beyond the approved figure and brought it to the board for ratification and we queried it and this is in the minutes.”
“It was awarded before my board. The management went beyond the contract sum without recourse to the board; they came to the board for ratification and queried it. But then I really want to believe that the previous board really took into consideration the operations of SSNIT before awarding that contract. The management also explained to the board that there was some unforeseen expenditure that occurred and that is why they went beyond their contract sum but then we queried it because we said they should have brought it to the board for discussion and approval before awarding it,” Prof. Alabi added.
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The Economic and Organised Crime Organisation (EOCO) is currently investigating 5 SSNIT staff for their involvement in the acquisition of a BOS software for the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) at $66 million.
The Director General, Finance, Administration and MIS at SSNIT, Michael Addo said the investigation will give further details on the software purchase.
“SSNIT acquired a new operating system called BOS; it is designed to improve SSNIT’s operating processes, to make it fast so that we can all network before then we had a hot spot of different systems that we were using. We did spend quite a little bit of money on that to acquire the software and the hardware.”
The Board of SSNIT has therefore contracted an audit firm, Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC) to audit the transaction.
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Find the list of the members of the SSNIT board from 2009 to 2013
Mr Kwame Peprah - Chairman
Mr Peter Kofi Otoo Addo (Government Nominee) – Member
Mrs Sati Ocran (Government Nominee) – Member
Hon. Fifi Kwetey (Rep. of Ministry of Finance & Economic Planning) – Member
Nana Fredua Agyeman Pambuo 1/Mr Terence Ronald Darko (Rep. of Ghana Employers’ Association) – Member
Mr Theodore Gyau (Rep. of Ghana Employers’ Asociation) – Member
Mr Kofi Asamoah (Rep. of Organised Labour) – Member
Mr Abraham Tetteh Dian Okine (Rep.of Organised Labour) – Member
Mr Kwame Amo-Dako (Rep. of Organised Labour) – Member
Mr Robertson Nii Akwei Allotey (Rep. of Organised Labour) – Member
Lt. Col. Jacob Hester Blood-Dzraku (Rtd.) (Rep. of Security Services) – Member
Mr Solomon Laryea Tawiah Yemoson/ Mr Theodore Nee Okpey (Rep. of Nat. Pensioners’ Assoc.) – Member
Mr Kwasi Boatin/Dr Frank Odoom (Director General, SSNIT) – Member
Mrs Gifty J. Annan (Company Secretary) – Secretary