Power Minister sued over AMERI deal

Pressure group, CitizenGhana Movement has sued the Minister of Power, Dr Kwabena Donkor over the controversial power deal signed between the Government of Ghana and Africa and Middle East Resources Investment Group (AMERI Energy) LLC.

It has been revealed by a Norwegian newspaper, VG, that one Umar Farooq who signed the deal with the power minister and the deputy attorney general Dominic Ayene is a criminal who is wanted by Swiss and Norwegian authorities.

The Power Ministry in a statement has denied all the issues raised by VG a Norwegian newspaper on the deal with government.

Officials of AMERI have also indicated that the contract they signed with Ghana is clean and devoid of fraud.

However, the explanations have not gone down well with many Ghanaians.

The CitizenGhana Movement has therefore, in its suit, prayed the court to ask the power minister “to furnish the Applicants with a copy of the signed contract together with the due diligence report (if any) on the contract between the Government of Ghana and Africa and Middle East Resources Investment Group (AMERI Energy) LLC dated 10th February, 2015.”

Below is the suit:CITIZENGHANA MOVEMENT SUES THE MINISTER OF POWER, THE SPEAKER OF PARLIAMENT AND THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL ON THE AMERI CONTRACTIn the past few days, it has come to the knowledge of Ghanaians, through a Norwegian media organization, VG, several issues concerning a contract signed between the Government of Ghana and the Africa & Middle East Resources Investment Group (AMERI Energy) LLC.Some of the issues surrounding the contract include the fact that one of the persons involved is an international fraudster who is wanted for financial crimes as well as his engagement in organized crime. Another issue has to do with the financial arrangements and obligations of the Government of Ghana under the contract. There is also the issue of how the deal went through Parliament without full scrutiny.In pursuance of the constitutional right to information as provided in Article 21(f), the CitizenGhana Movement, acting through two of its leading members, has on the 16th day of December, 2015, sued the Minister of Power, the Speaker of Parliament and the Attorney-General in the Human Rights Court, Accra. The reliefs being sought from the Human Rights Court are as follows:a. An order directed at the Honourable Minister of Power to furnish the Applicants with a copy of the signed contract together with the due diligence report (if any) on the contract between the Government of Ghana and Africa and Middle East Resources Investment Group (AMERI Energy) LLC dated 10th February, 2015.b. An order directed at the Honourable Minister of Power to make full disclosure on the said contract between the Government of Ghana and AMERI Energy.c. A further order directed at the Speaker of Parliament to make available the minutes and/or the record of deliberations together with the Report of the Parliamentary Sub Committee on Mines and Energy available to the Applicants. d. Any further or consequential order(s) as the honourable court may deem fit.The court action is brought in the spirit of probity and accountability as well as in exercise of the civic responsibility to protect and preserve public property and expose and combat misuse and waste of public funds and property as enshrined in Article 41(f) of the Constitution.We wish to use this medium to call for support from all Ghanaians and civil society organizations concerning this suit. We welcome any positive collaboration with any individual and/or civil society organization as we collectively embark on demanding accountability from our leaders.