Executive Director of the Institute for Liberty and Policy Innovation (ILAPI), Peter Bismark Kwofie, says there is nothing wrong with the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) looking for strategic investors and selling some shares of its hotels.
He hailed SSNIT’s choice to sell the shares as the best, but was quick to point out that the difficulty individuals have is who would buy the hotels.
SSNIT has explained that the decision to sell 60 percent shares each of four of its hotels to Rock City Hotel, owned by Bryan Acheampong, is because hesubmitted the best and strongest technical and financial proposal among the bids received.
SSNIT said that Rock City’s proposal met the criteria set out in the Request for Proposals (RFP) and was selected in a transparent process in strict adherence to the Public Procurement Act.
The response from SSNIT comes after North Tongu MP Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa filed a petition with the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to investigate the process surrounding the sale of six hotels.
The MP, in his petition, mentioned Labadi Beach Hotel, La Palm Royal Beach Resort, Elmina Beach Resort, Ridge Royal Hotel, Busua Beach Resort, and the Trust Lodge Hotel.
Reacting to this in an interview on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, Peter Bismark Kwofie posited that the best decision SSNIT has taken is to look for strategic investors to buy a major stake in its hotels.
He told host Kwabena Agyapong that although SSNIT is one of the most organised state institutions in the country, it has not been able to manage its assets and investments, including the hotels that are up for sale.
He cited La Palm as an example, stating that the hotel is no longer competitive as its former customers are seeking services from other hotels in the business.
The facilities at the hotel, he said, were detrioriating and losing their touch.
This, he believes, has affirmed the assertion that the government is incompetent at managing businesses, and the best option is to hand them over to the strategic or private sector to manage them on behalf of the state.
He supported SSNIT’s pursuit of strategic partners and the sale of some of its shares to them.
“The challenge, however, is who the hotels are sold to. The person to whom the hotels are being sold is our challenge. That is the challenge people face. If Bryan Acheampong was not a politician, we would not have any problems or reservations about the transaction. However, he is a politician, and his administration is currently in power. As a result, it raises important questions. It raises concerns about conflict of interest. We would not have asked these questions if his government had not been in power. There are concerns about him because he is a politician and his administration holds power. People will question whether procedures and laws were followed correctly.
Some would question whether any laws were breached in his benefit so that he could win the offer. However, if the politics of this problem are removed, there is nothing wrong with SSNIT’s decision to seek out strategic investors and sell majority shares to them. That is why I am delighted that CHRAJ has been petitioned about the issue. “That is appropriate,” he said.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
