Clearing agent sues govt over engagement of West Blue
The decision by the government to engage West Blue Ghana Limited for the implementation of the Single Window and Risk Management System project at the country’s ports is being challenged at the High Court.
Advertisement
A Tema-based clearing agent, Mr Michael Kweku Djan, is praying the Human Rights Division of the High Court to place an injunction on the defendants and their agents from solely engaging West Blue Ghana Limited in the national single window project until the final determination of a suit challenging the engagement of the company.
With the establishment of the National Single Window, all shipment activities and transit related businesses will be integrated to achieve efficiency and enable the government to generate more revenue at the ports.
The dispute stems from a letter purported to have been written by the Chief of Staff directing the Minister of Finance to engage only West Blue Ghana Limited to implement the National Single Window project.
According to the applicant, the move by the government to do sole sourcing was unfair, unjust and unreasonable because that had blocked him and other agents from having the equal opportunity to apply.
Hearing of the application for an interim injunction has been slated for Thursday, July 16, 2015.
Substantive suit
The substantive suit, which was filed on July 10, 2015, has the Minister of Trade and Industry, the Minister of Finance, the Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice as the first, second, third and fourth respondents, respectively.
Mr Djan is arguing that the defendants’ action sinned against Article 296 of the 1992 Constitution because “their decision to engage in single-source procurement is far from being candid, as same smacks of favouritism, arbitrariness and a flagrant disrespect of the laws of Ghana in our current constitutional dispensation — needless to mention open abuse of the Executive powers”.
Other Trending Stories
According to him, the action of the defendants constituted an infringement on his rights to work and have equal business opportunities in realising his economic rights as a citizen of Ghana and, for that matter, an infringement of his fundamental human rights.
Reliefs sought
Mr Djan is, therefore, praying the court to quash the directive from the Chief of Staff which directed the Minister of Finance to engage only West Blue for the implementation of the National Single Window and Risk Management System project.
An order of mandamus compelling the ministers of Trade and Finance to subject the implementation of the project to competitive tendering to enable the applicant and his prospective partners and all other interested entities to participate in the tender is also being sought by Mr Djan.
He is further urging the court to direct the Minister of Finance and the GRA “to conduct themselves in accordance with Article 296 of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana with respect to the award of the contract for the implementation of the national Single Window and Risk Management System project”.
The applicant is asking the court to declare that the implementation of the project in contention is the type of service available and capable of supply by other service providers in Ghana.
He is also seeking an assertion that “the single-sourcing of the National Single Window and Risk Management project in favour of West Blue Ghana Limited is a breach of Section 40 of the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663) which lays down the conditions required to warrant a procurement entity to be engaged in a single-source procurement”.
Additionally, he is praying the court to hold that the decision of the Presidency to engage West Blue to undertake the project in contention was discriminatory and a breach of the fundamental human rights of the applicant, as enshrined in Article 17 of the 1992 Constitution.
Mr Paa Kwasi Abaidoo, a legal practitioner, is representing the applicant.
Writer’s email: mabel.baneseh@graphic.com.gh.