Feature Article of Thursday, 17 May 2012Columnist: Asamoah, KwasiIn a rejoinder to Honorable E. T. mensahââ¬â¢s assertion that, the NPP failed to use GREDA in the construction of the Flagstaff house in the article ââ¬ÅNPP Replies E. T. Mensahââ¬, which appeared on Ghanaweb on May 15, 2012, Mr. Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie, the General Secretary of NPP alleges that 80% of the work on Flagstaff House (formerly Jubilee House). There is a difference between Ghanaians and GREDA (Ghana real Estate Development Association). Mr. Kwadwo Owusu Afriyieââ¬â¢s, intimation that 80% of the work on Flagstaff House (formerly Jubilee House) was done by Ghanaians is not the same thing as the GREDA having been contracted to do 80% of the work on Flagstaff House. Can Mr. Afriyie give us a list of GREDA companies which were contracted by the NPP government to build 80% of Flagstaff house as he is alleging? Mr. Afriyie is comparing apples to oranges, just to score cheap political points. While Honorable E. T. Mensah is talking about the NPP governmentââ¬â¢s failure to use GREDA for the building of Flgagstaff House, Mr. Owusu Afriyie is talking about 80% Ghanaian workforce, which is not the same thing as GREDA.
If he is referring Ghanaian workforce, I know there is a stipulation in contracts with foreign firms in the real estate industry which calls for a 70% local content. This means that 70% of the workers must be Ghanaians, and 70 % of building materials must be purchased locally. This stipulation is required of all foreign companies and it is strictly being adhered to by the NDC administration as a way of providing jobs for Ghanaians. This is what the NPP General Secretary, Mr. kwadwo Owusu Afriyie, is erroneously referring to as GREDAââ¬â¢s involvement in the building of Flagstaff House. The NPP government did not contract a single company from GREDA to build any part of the Flagstaff House. The project was contracted 100% to the Indians by the NPP government.
Kwasi Asamoah.
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