Saglemi Housing Project: AG charges Collins Dauda, 4 others, for causing financial loss to the State

Attorney General has charged former Works and Housing Minister, Collins Dauda, and four others, with causing financial loss to the State.

The Attorney General (AG), has charged the former Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing under the erstwhile John Mahama administration, and  Member of Parliament for Asutifi South, Constituency, in the Ahafo Region, Collins Dauda, and four others, with the offence of causing financial loss to the State, intentionally misapplying public property, among others over the Saglemi affordable housing project.

The AG’s department according to a copy of the filed charge sheet dated the 30th of July 2021 and labeled case number, CR/0673/2021, filed the case at the High Court registry at 12:42 hours GMT.

Other Accused Persons

The other four accused persons as captured on the charge sheet are; Kwaku Agyeman-Mensah, also a onetime Works and Housing Minister during the NDC administration, Alhaji Ziblim Yakubu, a former Chief Director at the Works and Housing Ministry, Andrew Clocanas, the Executive Chairman of Construtora OAS Ghana Limited and lastly, Nouvi Tetteh Angelo.

First Two Counts

The first two counts are intentionally misapplying public property contrary to section 1 (2) of the Public Property Protection Act, 1977 (SMCD) 140 and willfully causing financial loss to the Republic contrary to section 179A(3)(a) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29).

Initial Particulars of Offence

The particulars of offence associated with the first count states that “ALHAJI COLLINS DAUDA, between February 2014 and December 2016 in Accra in the Greater Accra Region, you intentionally misapplied the sum of Two Hundred Million dollars (US$200,000,000) belonging to the Government of Ghana by causing the said amount which had been approved by the Parliament of Ghana for the construction of 5,000 housing units to be applied towards the payment of 1,412 housing units under the Saglemi Affordable Housing Project.

Saglemi Housing Project

The $200 million Saglemi housing project was initiated by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) when it was in government and was expected to deliver an initial 5,000 housing units. Covering 300-acre land with one to three-bedroom apartments for low-income earners, the project was intended to reduce the country’s massive housing deficit. So far US$197 million representing 98% has been expended on 1,502 units as against the planned 5,000 units.

The original output target of the Saglemi project of 5,000 units at a total cost of US$200 million as stipulated in the financing agreement presented to, and approved by Parliament had surreptitiously, and drastically, reduced to 1,502, of which 1,389 units had been completed without a commensurate reduction in the overall loan financing. Currently, an amount of approximately US$197million representing 98% has been expended on 1,502 units as against the planned 5,000 units.