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Tag: Sputnik-V vaccine

  • Sputnik V scandal: I was working so hard to keep us alive, yet my own colleagues were against me – Agyeman Manu

    Sputnik V scandal: I was working so hard to keep us alive, yet my own colleagues were against me – Agyeman Manu

    Former Health Minister Kweku Agyeman Manu has staunchly defended his actions in the procurement of Sputnik V vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic two years ago, dismissing allegations and characterizing the situation as a potential setup against him.

    The Dormaa Central Member of Parliament (MP), Mr Agyeman Manu, emphasized that he did not execute the procurement single-handedly, suggesting a coordinated effort by certain individuals to undermine him. He stressed that his primary concern during the pandemic was saving Ghanaian lives, refuting any peripheral considerations at the time.

    In an interview with Starr FM on Wednesday, February 21, he expressed disappointment with some parliamentary colleagues who, according to him, failed to appreciate his explanations.

    Despite being cleared of any wrongdoing, he lamented that the health committee in Parliament did not accept his explanations.

    “I had done no wrong, but some people just wanted to pitch me up and put wrongdoing on me. I was doing that one in good faith, collaborating, and having meetings, I didn’t do that transaction myself alone. Then all of a sudden, ‘You didn’t come to Parliament, in an emergency.’ No matter how much I tried to explain, the health committee in Parliament would not accept anything,” he stated.

    The lawmaker revealed that he felt so disheartened during the episode that he considered requesting charges to be brought against him in court. Despite challenges, he asserted his dedication to serving the nation and adhering to due processes during the procurement, vehemently denying any wrongdoing or violation of the law.

    “No matter how much I tried to explain, the health committee in Parliament would not accept anything. At one stage, I got so down that I was even requesting that they charge me to court because I thought that my explanations would have been accepted in court rather than in front of my own colleagues on the committee. Whether it was mischief or something, I wouldn’t be able to tell, but that was what happened,” he stated.

    “Subsequently, even when that was dying down, another group in the chamber was trying to cite me for perjury, and they were asking for a censure motion on me. These were times that I felt that I had done so well, I was working so hard to try to keep us alive even in the midst of a massive pandemic on the globe,” he explained.

    “I don’t know what is going to happen, but that is what it is. I will still insist and continue to say I did no wrong. I never can be cited for any wrongdoing. But it gave me pressure because that was in my nature,” he insisted.

    The former Health Minister remains resolute in maintaining his innocence and highlighting his commitment to the well-being of Ghanaians during challenging times.

  • Sputnik V report: Initiate criminal probe against Agyeman-Manu ASEPA to AG

    The Alliance for Social Equity and Public Accountability (ASEPA) has given the Attorney General a 48-hour ultimatum to initiate criminal investigations and prosecution against the Minister of Health, Mr Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, and all other persons involved in the procurement of Sputnik V vaccines.

    This comes after the Ad-hoc Committee of Parliament set up to investigate the unsuccessful procurement of the vaccine by the Health Ministry, released a report of its findings and recommendations.

    In portions of the report, the Committee said it discharged its mandate by “diligently” examining the two agreements as well as “written and oral evidence on the subject within the parameters of the seven terms of reference and the timelines given by the house”.

    The Committee said it found that the Ministry of Health did not comply with the requirements of Article 181(5) of the Constitution in respect of its agreement with Messrs Al Maktoum.

    “The minister said that he did that because of the exigencies of the time when COVID-19 posed public health crisis with highest fatalities and there was urgent global search for vaccines and at that material time the agreements were signed, all government-to-government sources had failed as the bilateral sources had communicated to the Ministry that they would only be able to deliver in August 2021”, portions of the report said.

    It added: “Suffice to say that the bilateral sources did not include Russia since Ghana had no such arrangement with Russia”.

    “The agreements ensuing from the negotiations have been submitted to the PPA for ratification, the Committee determined that the agreements were entered into without prior approval by the PPA under Sections 40 and 41 of Act 663. Indeed, at the time of completing its work, PPA was yet to do the ratification”.

    A statement signed by the Executive Director of ASEPA, Mensah Thompson on 9 August 2021 indicated that “Even though we commend the committee for the work done, we believe the work of the Committee and its resultant report wasn’t particularly thorough.

    “The adverse findings made by the Committee are already issues civil society, experts and well-meaning Ghanaian have already raised in the public domain”.

    “Our limitation was that we lacked the powers to recommend appropriate sanctions against the Minister in respect of the glaring violations of our laws and that’s why a committee was set up to investigate the matter and make appropriate recommendations.

    “Retrieval of monies paid to Sheikh for the failed procurement is an un-compromising formality and that cannot be the end to this matter,” it added.

    ASEPA, therefore, stated that “In respect of the violations of our laws there are clear sanctions that must be activated in accordance with the law, in respect of this we are giving the Attorney General a 48-hour ultimatum, to initiate Criminal Investigations and Prosecution against the Minister for Health and all other persons involved in this shady procurement or ASEPA will take the matter up and file an official complaint with the CID”, adding that: “A petition has been already prepared together with all relevant documents including the report of the ad-hoc committee of Parliament awaiting to be filed within the next 48 hours at the CID if the Attorney General fails to initiate the relevant legal processes against the health minister”.

    Source: classfmonline.com

  • Sputnik V saga: I will refund your money, share your account details – Sheikh to Agyeman-Manu

    A Dubai based businessman, Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum, who has been at the centre of the botched controversial Sputnik V vaccine deal has agreed to refund an amount of US$2,470,000 to Ghana.

    The development comes after the health minister, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, in a letter made a request for a refund of the money.

    In a letter sighted by GhanaWeb, Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum asked the Health Ministry to provide account details necessary to undertake the refund.

    “We acknowledge receipt of your letter, Ref No. MOIVOM/LL1/7/2I, dated 2nd of August 2021, with a formal request to refund the remaining amount of the non-supplied doses from the 50% advance transferred to our accounts.”

    “We, hereby, request to kindly acknowledge and confirm the above-mentioned amounts to be refunded, further to which we shall initiate the refund process to your bank account. Please share with us the bank details where the refund needs to be processed,” the letter read in part.

    See Sheikh Al Maktoum’s letter below:

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com

  • Parliament Ad Hoc Committee to probe Sputnik V vaccine contracts

    Parliament on Friday constituted a nine-member Ad Hoc Committee to investigate the procurement contracts between the Government of Ghana and Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum and one other for the supply of Sputnik-V COVID-19 vaccines.

    Deputy Majority Leader Alexander Kwamina Afenyo-Markin is the chairman of the committee, and Mr Kwabena Mintah-Akandoh, Ranking Member on the Health Committee is vice.

    The rest of the members are Dr Nana Ayew Afriyie, Chairman of the Health Committee; Mr Bernard Ahiafor, MP for Akatsi South; Mr Kwame Anyimadu Antwi, MP for Asante-Akim Central, Mr Ernest Norgbey, MP for Ashaiman; Mrs Elizabeth Ofosu-Agyare, MP for Techiman North; Ms Sheila Bartels, MP for Ablekuma North; and Mr Farouk Aliu Mahama, MP for Yendi Constituency.

    Majority Leader Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu announced the names of the members of the Ad hoc Committee to the House.

    He said the terms of reference of the Committee was to determine whether or not the transaction for the procurement and supply of the Sputnik V vaccine between the Government of Ghana (GOG) represented by the Ministry of Health (MOH) and Al Maktoum S.L Group qualifies as international Business or Economic transaction under Article 181(5) of the Constitution, and if so, whether it was subjected to prior approval of Parliament.

    Also, the Committee is to determine the procurement process that was followed and the propriety of same and the prices of the vaccines as well as determine whether the services of the middleman were procured in the transaction and if so, having propriety regard to the relevant laws.

    Additionally, the Committee is to ascertain the cost of the vaccines and the justification of the cost vaccines, and whether the transaction guaranteed value for money for Ghana.

    Moreover, the Committee is to determine whether or not any consideration was passed from the GOG to the middleman, suppliers, or any other person.

    Furthermore, for the Committee to determine or not the Ministry of Health misled Parliament during the consideration of the transaction for the procurement of the vaccine.

    The Committee also to inquire into any other matters connected to the purchase and supply of the Sputnik V vaccine in the agreement between the GOG and the private office of Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum and S.L Global.

    Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu in a comment suggested that the Ad hoc Committee should have been a committee of eight members reflecting the size of each caucus.

    He said the Minority Side has no problem with Mr Afenyo Markin, Chairing the Ad hoc Committee with Mr Kwabena Mintah-Akandoh as his Vice-Chairman.

    The Second Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Mr Andrew Amoako Asiamah who was in the chair commissioned the Ad hoc Committee and ask them to report to the House in three weeks.

    Source: m.peacefmonline.com

  • Sputnik V: Use of middleman unjustified Minority

    The Minority in Parliament has described the Emirati and Norwegian middlemen contracted by the government to secure the Sputnik vaccine as imposters who are seeking to defraud the country in the quest to procure the vaccines.

    Minority Leader Haruna IIdrisu is daring government to name the deputy Russian ambassador they claim they have dealt with in an attempt to get the Sputnik V.

    Speaking to the media in parliament, the minority says the Sputnik contract signed between Ghana and the third party is not in the interest of the country, there it must be halted.

    “We state without fear of contradiction that even this transaction qualifies to be an international economic transaction within the meaning of Article 181(5) of the 1992 Constitution and therefore, failure to have parliamentary approval or better still ratification of it leaves it walking an illegal transaction per the laws of the land,” he said. “We will be happy to see what the opinion of of the Attorney General will be on this particular transaction but we are interested in the cost over run and the unjustified, exorbitant payment of COVID vaccines using middlemen,” he added.

    Foreign Affairs Minister, Shirley Ayorkor Botchway justified the decision by the government to use a middleman to procure the Sputnik V Vaccine.

    She said at a press conference in Accra on Monday, June 14 that it has not been easy to get the vaccines directly from the manufacturers.

    “It has not been easy at all. Not just for Ghana, but for any of our country and not just for Africa but also for other countries around the world.

    “Whether we were involved. Yes we were involved and I can assure you that it is difficult to procure vaccines directly from manufacturers,” she said.

    “It is difficult, extremely so even if you have money to procure vaccines from the source. It is almost impossible and so we made contact and we still continue to pursue getting the vaccines. It has not been easy.

    “Whether we were involved?  Yes from the beginning we were involved but I can assure you that it is difficult to procure vaccines directly from manufacturers but whatever decision government takes, the responsibility is all of us. It is a collective responsibility and it is a collective decision that was taken. Government will only take that decision if all avenues are closed to it.”

    Ghana has been cited in an investigative report in a Norwegian newspaper Vergens Gang for agreeing to procure the Sputnik V vaccines from a businessman at a unit price of $19 instead of $10.

    The Ministry of Health has justified the purchase of Sputnik V vaccines at almost double the factory price, emphasising the negotiations were held at a time of scarcity of the products across the globe.

    But a statement issued by the Ministry of Health on Wednesday, June 9 said: “We were torn between accepting the price to enable us have access to the vaccine or facing the situation of the seller withdrawing from the negotiations, to the extent that the 15,000 doses that had been shipped to Ghana were going to be rerouted to other countries.”

     The statement signed by the Chief Director of the Ministry, Kwabena Boadu Oku-Afari, noted that the government was unable to obtain direct supplies of the vaccines from the Russian government and so had to resort to one Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for the supplies.

    According to the Ministry, $10 was the ex-factory price but the Emirati offered to sell the vaccines at $25 per dose.

    This was slashed by $6 after negotiations, according to the statement.

    This is the result of the cost build-up to the ex-factory price of US$10 per dose, taking into account land transportation, shipment, insurance, handling and special storage charges, as explained by the seller.

    “These are the factors which led us to agree the final price of US$19 per dose,” the Ministry stressed.

    It has assured Ghanaians that “it will endeavour to secure vaccines for the Ghanaian people, despite global shortages and cognisant of price and legal considerations”.

    Source: 3news.com

  • Sputnik V vaccine: Agyeman-Manu must face Parliament – Minority demands

    The Minority caucus in Parliament has served notice that it will push for Minister of Health, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu to appear before the house to establish the reasoning behind government’s decision to purchase 3.4 million doses of the Russian-made Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccines.

    One of the main points of controversy has been around the cost of a dose which is $19 through middlemen as compared to the ex-factory price of $10 per dose.

    The Ranking Member on the Health Committee of Parliament, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh in an interview with Citi News monitored by GhanaWeb described the contract as a rip off that required further explanation from government.

    “We have indicated to the Chairman of the Health Committee that the Health Minister be brought back to the Committee so that we get the opportunity to ask him more questions for him to clarify. I am sure we will be able to interrogate the issues and interrogate them well.

    “We are not going to relax on this particular matter even if it demands that we travel to Russia to look for more information, we will do it,” he stated.

    In a related development, Lawyer Martin Kpebu, a private legal practitioner is asking President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to sack the Minister of Health for his “sloppy” role in the procurement of the vaccines.

    “He should know that Ghanaians are very vigilant; so this one, I think the Health Minister has been too sloppy and the least the President can do is to sack him. The President should know that we are very angry with what the Health Minister has done, he has not shown prudence at all and has also shown no sensitivity to how Ghanaians react to issues of money,” Mr Kpebu said in an interview with Citi News.

    Source: www.ghanaweb.com