Atta-Mills Caught Up In ENRON Scandal

Federal prosecutors are investigating whether Enron Corp. for years bribed foreign government officials to win contracts for its far-flung operations abroad, underscoring the sweep of the government’s probe into Enron’s collapse.

‘WITHOUT REAL COMPETITION’: In Ghana, the World Bank in 2000 suspended its support for a $100 million water project after it was awarded to Enron’s Azurix unit. “We were concerned the award was sole-source, without real competition,” a World Bank official said last week.

“We advised the government we couldn’t finance it, because of the way the procurement was done.” After the award, the bank’s Ghana director, Peter Harrold, sent a harshly worded letter to Ghana’s then-Vice President John Atta-Mills canceling the loan and alleging corruption.

“We cannot have made it plainer to you that the key issue is transparency,” he wrote. “The arrangement you have reached with Azurix is one that has been arrived at on a completely nontransparent basis.”

World Bank officials cited a draft schedule of payments showing an unexplained, $5 million up-front payment by Enron. An Enron spokeswoman at the time denied reports in the Ghana press the $5 million was for government officials; a new Ghanian government has since suspended the award, and is now seeking competitive bids.

Claims of corruption have swirled for many months, with suggestions by the World Bank that Enron used its close ties with many governments to win contracts at uncompetitive rates or buy foreign assets on the cheap.

Enron denies the allegations, which it says are common for corporations that do business in the third world. The company said it has a "clear anti-corruption policy" that prohibits paying or receiving bribes.