STX loan saga takes another turn – struck with court injunction
Parliament on Monday deferred debates on the re-laid Supplier’s Credit Agreement between Ghana government and the STX Engineering and Construction Ghana Limited till August 3 2010.
At an extended sitting which lasted for about 11 hours, six loan agreements were granted, nine papers laid for the consideration of the House with Education Amendment Bills 2010 passed into law including Economic and Organised Crime Bills 2009 which also received approval into law.
This was without the much expected STX loan agreement.
However the STX which was afflicted with giant waves of resentment between the Majority and Minority leading to its withdrawal on the directives of President John Mills could run into another difficulty of a legal tussle.
Though no official report was made on the floor of House about the court action, a legal suit paper circulated to the press had Mr. James Kwabena Bomfeh (Jnr) National Youth Organiser of the Convention Peoples Party (CPP) filed a writ praying the Supreme Court to put an injunction on Parliament to proceed in granting the loan.
The writ which had two defendants, the Attorney General and the Minister of Justice and the Speaker of Parliament demanded the court to restrained Parliament to discontinue its action of laying the loan agreement and its onward approval until the determination of the case.
Meanwhile the loan agreements approved include the Additional Financing Agreement between the government of Ghana and the International Development Association (IDA) for an amount of SDR46.2million (US$70.0 million).
It would be used to undertake the Ghana Energy Development Access Project (GEDAP).
Another loan agreement stood between the government of Ghana and the International Development Association (IDA) for an amount of SDR49.7 million (US$ 75.0 million) to finance the Rural Water and Sanitation Project.
International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank Group has given another loan package to Ghana to the tune of SDR6.6 million (US$ 10.0 million).
It will be used to support the Third Natural Resources and Environmental Governance Development Policy Operation (NREG-DPO3).
Parliament also approved a loan agreement between the International Development Association (IDA) and the Ghana government for an amount of SDR 29.6 million (US$ 44.7 million) to be used in financing E-Ghana Project.
Finally, the house okayed a SDR16.5 million (US$ 25.0 million)
International Development Association (IDA) loan to contracted for budgetary support for the implementation of the Food and Agriculture Sector Development Policy II (FASDEP II).
The House is expected to rise today, August 3, 2010.
Source: GNA