A fellow at the Center for Democratic Development (CDS-Ghana), Professor Stephen Asare, popularly known as Kwaku Azar, has weighed in on the recent ECG container saga, calling for decisive action against those responsible and a comprehensive overhaul of the country’s State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs).
While commending the arrest of 14 suspects in connection with the saga, Prof. Asare emphasized that the focus should not be limited to the “downstream” perpetrators, but rather on the “upstream” culprits who facilitated the rot through procurement breaches, budget busting, and shady dealings.
“The spotlight must also shine brightly on the upstream: the procurement breaches, budget busting, shady structuring, fake contracts, questionable directives from above, and the abuse of sole sourcing. That is where the rot starts — and that is where the real accountability must begin,” Prof. Asare stressed.
He further argued that the ECG saga is a symptom of a deeper decay within Ghana’s SOEs, which necessitates urgent reforms.
“What we need now is decisive, uncompromising action — one that holds everyone, especially those at the top of the rot chain, accountable.”
Prof. Asare also proposes a comprehensive reform program, which he dubbed “Operation Save Our State Owned Enterprises (OSOSO)”.
Anything short of this, he warned, would be tantamount to another “power theft in broad daylight — and this time, it won’t just be the lights going off, but public trust too.”
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