DIC, SSNIT Blamed For SOEs Woes

The Divestiture Implementation Committee (DIC) and the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) have been indicted for their role in the unlawful acquisition and disposal of State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) in the country. It has been established that persons to whom State Enterprises were divested went to SSNIT for funds to pay for the asset.

SSNIT either provided direct funding or guaranteed repayment of loans contracted from a bank for the purchase of the divested state enterprise.

These were contained in a report of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs on the 2002 annual report of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO).

It noted that the only security for recovery of loans granted or guaranteed by SSNIT were provisions in agreement for share options in those companies in the event of default. “Unfortunately, there have been default in most cases with the result that SSNIT has been left holding majority shares in divested enterprises that are not performing”, it added.

In the case of DIC, the report said common trends of malfeasance were uncovered by the SFO. Normal rules were flouted and where they were followed, they were skewed in favour of beneficiaries.

The report endorsed SFO's recommendations to government to address the institutional structural defects in the operations of not only SSNIT and DIC, but also all state institutions that facilitated such patterns of fraud so as to protect the interest of the State and Ghanaians.

The Committee also noted that there had been an increase in the number of NGOs operating in the country but this had not been matched by government's regulatory policy. SFO's investigations had revealed that some of these NGOs did not only enrich their own pockets to the detriment of the needy in society but also denied the state of revenues needed for development through their fraudulent activities.

Others take advantage of the tax waivers given them to assist or conduct commercial business at the expense of the public purse.