Single Window Project In Danger

Lawyers for Michael Kweku Djan, a private freight forwarder, are back in court seeking an injunction to restrain the government from solely engaging West Blue Consulting for the National Single Window and Risk Management Project. The motion filed at the Human Rights Division of the Accra High Court by Bernina Korkor Okutu from Dehyena Chambers in Accra, cited the Ministers of Trade and Finance, the Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and two others as respondents in the suit. The reappearance of the case in court comes barely a week after an Accra High Court presided over by Justice Anthony K. Yeboah, had struck out an earlier suit brought against the government in respect of the same project. West Blue, owned by Valentina Mintah, the daughter of NDC bigwig, the late Sqr. Ldr Clend Sowu, which operated in Nigeria with controversial appraisal, has solely been named by the government to undertake the National Single Window Project. Mr. Djan however, went to court seeking an order of mandamus compelling the Ministries of Trade and Finance to subject the implementation of the scheme to a competitive tendering to enable him and his prospective partners and all other interested entities to participate in the tender. In dismissing the case, the trial judge among other things, stated that the applicant did not disclose any reasonable cause of action, especially as the scheme was yet to begin. He argued that the applicant�s case sat on stilts of intended and imagined scenarios and that acting properly could not be taken into account in coming to a judicial decision. In the latest suit, Mr. Djan in a 30-paragraph affidavit in support of the motion, averred that on March 31, 2015 the Ministry of Trade and Industry suspended the implementation of the Ghana Conformity Assessment Programme (G-CAP) and the Advanced Shipment Information system (ASHI) to enable the Ministries of Trade, Finance and the GRA to integrate the Single Window system being developed at the time. He stated among other things, that as a step in his desire to participate in the Single Window and Risk Management Project, �I have acquired software for the said project with every intention of engaging and partnering a firm which has the expertise in the implementation� of the project. Mr. Djan posited, �In my own right, the software I have acquired can be effectively used to implement the single window project, including Pre-arrival Assessment Report System which is essentially required for the purposes of bidding and the intention to get into partnership.� The private freight forwarder contended that to his utter shock and surprise, he came by a letter dated May 12, 2015 in which President Mahama, through his Chief of Staff, had instructed the Minister of Finance to engage West Blue to undertake the project.