Ladies and gentlemen, gather around, for I bring you the most thrilling, jaw-dropping, popcorn-worthy saga of our time—The Great ECG Container Heist!
If you thought political scandals were all about shady land deals and missing state funds, you clearly haven’t heard of the latest blockbuster: How to Lose 1,328 Containers in 10 Days—coming soon to a port near you!
Scene 1: The Mystery of the Missing Containers
It all began during the grand transition of power when the outgoing NPP government left a farewell note to the incoming NDC government that read, “By the way, there are 3,000 ECG containers chilling at the port. Enjoy!” But wait! When the Minister of Energy, acting like a detective in a telenovela, visited the port, the officials scratched their heads and said, “Boss, it’s actually 2,500.”
Alarm bells rang, eyebrows were raised, and a committee was swiftly assembled to solve the mystery. They did what any good investigative team would do: they called GPHA and asked, “Hey, how many ECG containers are really here?” GPHA, sipping their morning tea, casually replied, “Oh, just 1,132.” ECG, seemingly confused about its own inventory, insisted, “Nope, we have 2,462!”
The committee, refusing to trust anyone, counted the containers themselves, and surprise, surprise—the GPHA was right! This meant 1,328 containers had taken an all-expenses-paid trip to the Land of the Lost.
Scene 2: The Vanishing Money Trick
Now, you’d think ECG, with a shipping account that received 5 million cedis every week for clearing containers, would be good at, well… clearing containers. But nope! In 2022, ECG’s MD, Dubik Mahama, had a lightbulb moment: “Let’s stop paying into the shipping account and see what happens!” Spoiler alert: chaos happened.
Containers piled up faster than a Fufu queue at Nhyira FM’s free Fufu Party.
The Transport Department waved red flags and yelled, “Demurrage is skyrocketing! We’re losing money!” ECG Management, sipping their ‘broke’ tea, shrugged and said, “No money to clear containers, sorry!” Meanwhile, they were still importing new containers at the speed of light and paying suppliers 90% of contract sums.
Oh, and guess what? The demurrage bill had already hit 1.5 million cedis. That’s right, folks! ECG was the only entity paying rent on properties they weren’t even using!
Scene 3: The Genius Clearance Plan
Now, brace yourselves. From nowhere—like a magician pulling rabbits out of a hat—MD Dubik Mahama introduced two companies to “help” clear the containers. Enter MINT LOGISTICS and DAWARDS BOND LIMITED —two companies so elite, one had 10 employees, and the other had… just 1 (the CEO, secretary, cleaner, and security guard all rolled into one).
MINT LOGISTICS was given 1,110 containers to clear at a cool 160,000 cedis per container. Quick math: that’s over 177 million cedis! DAWARDS BOND LIMITED? They got 200 containers, charging a humble 115,000 cedis per container, totaling 23 million cedis. Who knew clearing containers was more lucrative than gold mining?
Scene 4: The Magical Recycling Business
So, what happens next? Simple!
- ECG continues importing containers like an overenthusiastic online shopper.
- They conveniently “forget” to clear them.
- A mysterious clearance company is called in to save the day at ridiculous prices.
- The contents of said containers magically disappear.
- ECG goes on a shopping spree to replace stolen items.
Rumor has it, brand-new ECG cables are being melted down and sold to Chinese and Indian businesses, who then export them while ECG turns around to import more!
Ladies and gentlemen, we have officially turned Ghana into a real-life Monopoly game!
Scene 5: The Procurement Department Gets a Facelift (Literally)
Now, if you think this was just about missing containers, think again! ECG’s procurement department had its own episode of Extreme Makeover. In 2022, planned procurement was 1.7 billion cedis, but the actual procurement? Just 460 million cedis—a small difference of 1.3 billion cedis (pocket change, really). By 2023, planned procurement was 935 million cedis, but ECG said, “Hold my beer,” and spent 8.3 billion cedis instead—a modest 7 billion cedis deviation. And in 2024? Same script, different year: planned procurement of 1.3 billion cedis, but actual procurement hit 8.2 billion cedis.
Faced with this chaotic spending spree, ECG had a brilliant idea: merge the Procurement Department with the Estate Department! And to top it all off, they replaced the Head of Procurement with… wait for it… the Head of Estate—someone who knew about buildings, not buying cables.
Scene 6: The Cast of Characters
As we close this tragicomedy, let’s not forget the star-studded cast:
- Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh (NAPO)–The Energy Minister at the time.
- Dubik Mahama– The MD of ECG, mastermind of “Operation: Where Did the Containers Go?”
- Kelly Gadzekpo– The Board Chairman before the musical chairs game started.
- Afenyo Markin– The new Board Chair who arrived just in time for the grand finale.
And of course, the countless ECG workers who, to this day, are probably still looking for those 1,328 missing containers like an explorer on an adventure!
Epilogue: The Moral of the Story
Dear reader, what have we learned today? That in Ghana, a simple port can turn into a Bermuda Triangle where containers vanish, reappear, and somehow still cost taxpayers millions.
That ECG has mastered the fine art of spending money it doesn’t have while making sure cables do an annual pilgrimage to China and back.
And most importantly, that somewhere in the depths of Tema Port, a lone container is whispering, “Help me, I’m lost…”
Stay tuned for the sequel: How to Find 1,328 Containers Without Actually Trying!
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Speaking at a recent event, Kotey emphasized that the new measure will eliminate third-party involvement in the issuance of DV plates. Previously, some external agents played a role in distributing these plates, raising concerns about potential irregularities. With the DVLA taking direct control, the process is expected to be more transparent and regulated.
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