The Ministry of Finance has been directed by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to immediately halt the revenue assurance agreement between Strategic Mobilization Ghana Ltd (SML) and the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).
Additionally, he has designated KPMG, a firm that provides audit, tax, and advisory services, to carry out an instant audit of the transaction.
The President stated in a statement dated January 2 and signed by Eugene Arhin, the Director of Communications at the Presidency, “The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has appointed KPMG, the reputable Audit, Tax and Advisory Services firm, to conduct an immediate audit into the transaction between the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and Strategic Mobilization Ghana Ltd (SML), a contract which was entered into to enhance revenue assurance in the downstream petroleum sector, the upstream petroleum production and minerals and metals resources value chain.”
Additionally, KPMG has been given a two-week deadline by President Akufo-Addo to finish its report and “submit appropriate recommendations to him.”
The President has instructed the GRA and the Ministry of Finance to halt contract execution while the audit report is being submitted.
“The President has directed the Ministry of Finance and GRA to provide KPMG with whatever assistance they will require for conduct of the audit, and has also directed the Ministry of Finance and the Ghana Revenue Authority to suspend the performance of the contract, pending the submission of the audit report, including any payments presently envisaged under its terms.”
Following an investigation conducted by the Fourth Estate in December 2023, SML refuted reports that it had been granted a 10-year contract, stating that it had been granted a 5-year contract instead.
The Fourth Estate further stated that the SML Company’s ludicrous claims that it had prevented Ghana from losing billions of cedis in the downstream petroleum sector were refuted by its investigations.
