The Deputy Director of Urban Roads, James Amoo-Gottfried, has revealed the government is faced with difficulties in securing contractors for road projects in the country.
In an interview on Adom TV’s morning show, Badwam, Mr. Amoo-Gottfried said issues with the payment system are their biggest bane and have accounted for the reluctance of contractors to get to work.
The situation, he said has resulted in some stalled projects across the country.
“We are even looking for contractors to work with but we don’t get because there are a lot of challenges in the system. Payment doesn’t come as it should. Some contractors like the job and want to do it, but we don’t get enough personnel for the kind of work we want to do. So some work has been stalled for a long time,” he said.
However, Mr. Amoo-Gottfried assured that the department will work towards finding solutions to this issue soon.
“The problem has been being identified, so we will try to find solutions soon enough,” he said.
The Director disclosed this while commenting on allegations by Professor Stephen Adei, a former Board Chairman of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).
Prof Adei, who is also a former Rector of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), in October 2023 said he has information that, persons seeking road contracts are told: “Road contracts will be given to you, provided you pay 1 million upfront.”
But Mr Amoo-Gottfried dismissed the claims, stating that, he has been in the business since 1989 and has never had such an encounter.
Meanwhile, the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) following an investigation into the allegations has described it as presumptuous.
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