Gyampo has exposed himself

Professor Ransford Gyampo has admitted he texted the Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng, and cautioned him “not to cause financial loss to the state even as you go about your investigations.” He texted when officers from the OSP and National Security were still conducting an operation at SML with court warrants.

In what capacity did Gyampo make that caution to the OSP? Is he the PRO for SML? Does he work for the GRA to be able to make that determination?

When President Akufo-Addo suspended SML’s operations in the first six months of 2024, the GRA board chairman, Joe Ghartey, released a press statement in July 2024 and stated that the GRA had exceeded its target for the first six months of 2024 in a “historic” way. This was the same period during which SML’s activities at the ports and the downstream petroleum sector were suspended. Later, the KPMG report said the SML operations at the port were already being performed by the GRA, so the contract was cancelled. So, what financial loss is Gyampo talking about?

The KPMG Report, specifically pages 157 and 158, shows emphatically that SML’s operations do not affect revenue or volumes of petroleum products. In fact, SML recorded the lowest volumes. The KPMG report says the 400 million litres a month, which SML claimed its operations had brought about, was already being recorded in 2019 before SML started operation in June 2020. So, how would anybody lose revenue if SML’s operations are disrupted by the OSP’s operations?

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During my investigation, SML had claimed that the company was curbing under-declaration, diversion, and dilution of petroleum products. When we confronted the GRA and SML with evidence that those services were being performed by other companies, and not SML, the two parties to the SML contract admitted that SML’s claims were false. In fact, SML proceeded to delete the claims from its website that same day. So, what revenue will the GRA lose if the shady operations of SML are disrupted?

SML admitted on record that its metres recorded less accurate figures than the existing metres at the loading gantries.

The GRA admitted on camera that the SML recordings are not used for its revenue mobilisation. The GRA uses figures recorded from the existing metres, the same metres the GRA relied on before SML was engaged.

During our investigation, I asked SML whether its operations had ever detected any anomaly or wrongdoing on the part of any oil company, the Managing Director said no, adding that that was not the mandate of SML, but the GRA.

So, if SML does not check under-declaration, does not check diversion, does not check dilution, and has never detected any wrongdoing on the part of the oil companies, in what way would the state lose revenue if the OSP took their servers?

Ransford Gyampo and some professors at UPSA have a long history of defending SML, and it is curious that in the middle of the operation by OSP and National Security, he called and sent text messages. The Ghana Shippers Authority, which Gyampo heads, is not a party to the contract, so what was his interest?

If Gyampo cares about the loss of revenue to Ghana, he should have been calling for the termination of SML’s contract, prosecution, and retrieval of money, and not cautioning the OSP.

Anybody who doubts the fact that SML’s shady operations have not impacted Ghana in any positive way should read pages 157 and 158 of the KPMG report. It is online. They can watch our investigative documentary, in which the company admitted to making false claims and subsequently deleting them from SML’s website. They should ask Gyampo and the other SML defenders that if SML says it’s not checking under-declaration, diversion or diversion, what specific anomaly is the company curbing, for which reason was paid over $141 million by the end of 2023?