The Chief Executive Officer of Ghana GoldBod, Sammy Gyamfi, has defended the government’s approach of sole sourcing for essential road projects under the Big Push initiative, rejecting allegations of misconduct or inflated expenses.
This response is in light of concerns expressed in a publication by The Fourth Estate, which scrutinized the procurement processes associated with the Big Push Agenda, particularly the reliance on sole sourcing and the potential for cost inflation.
The publication also accused the Minister for Transport, Governs Kwame Agbodza, of overseeing the issuance of 81 sole-sourced contracts totaling over GHS73 billion within a span of seven months.
In a statement released on Tuesday, March 24, 2026, Sammy Gyamfi asserted that there was “not a scintilla of evidence” to substantiate claims of misconduct, emphasizing that all contracts awarded through sole sourcing were legal and duly authorized.
He highlighted that all road contracts under the Big Push initiative awarded via sole sourcing had obtained the requisite PPA approval and undergone Value for Money audits, confirming the absence of any irregularities.
“The urgency of these projects cannot be denied. All contracts were awarded to multiple qualified and experienced contractors, and payments are strictly contingent upon actual work certified by independent consultants,” he stated.
The statement also aimed to address misunderstandings in media reports, particularly those implying that the current government had misused sole sourcing practices. According to the CEO, some reports mistakenly included 23 inherited road projects that were initially awarded by the previous NPP administration as part of the current government’s sole-sourced contracts.
“These projects, such as Suame Interchange, Ofankor-Nsawam, and Adenta-Dodowa, were not re-awarded but merely novated and financed under the Big Push programme. The Fourth Estate could have reported this more accurately,” the CEO remarked.
He further noted that while the NDC had previously criticized the unwarranted use of sole sourcing, the party never asserted that all sole sourcing was illegal.
“In the context of the Big Push projects, the use of sole-sourcing was entirely warranted because of the urgency involved, and there is no indication of inflation or misuse,” he remarked.
The CEO further emphasized the protracted timelines associated with conventional competitive tendering, pointing out that this process could have postponed project completion past 2028. He referenced prior instances, such as the Road Toll project, where competitive tendering extended over a year due to its complexities.
This statement reinforces the government’s stance that urgent road projects can be awarded through sole-sourcing in a legal and transparent manner, thereby ensuring timely completion while upholding accountability.
