PV SPEAKS FROM AFAR, I CANNOT BE ACCUSED OF CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The former Special Advisor to former President Rawlings, Mr. P.V. Obeng has debunked media reports that he took a consultancy fee from SCANCEM, the parent company of the local cement company, GHACEM whilst in government. The DN Magasinet, a Norwegian newspaper on April 21, 2007, published a sensational account of Mr. PV Obeng?s role in a case in which an official of Scancem (owners of Ghacem) alleged in a Norwegian court that Mr. and Mrs. Rawlings had benefited from a secret account into which substantial sums had been paid by the company as part of a ploy to maintain its monopoly in the cement industry in parts of Africa.
The Rawlingses have since gotten their lawyers to issue a strong rebuttal to the charges.
In an exclusive interview on Oman Fm?s Morning Show, The National Agenda, P. V. Obeng stated that he formed his consortium in 1996 after he left the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and he was subsequently approached by the Norwegian company, the SCANCEM.
He noted that he had the consultancy contract with SCANCEM IN 1997 and later had the contract with scancem in 1998 noting that he could not have been conflict of interest as being suggested by a section of the media.
Mr. P.V. Obeng further stated that during his time as a consultant to SCANCEM, the company did not pay any bribe to the former first family, the Rawlingses. He widely defended former President as a man he could not have succumbed to bribery pressure as being peddled
Mr. P.V. Obeng stated that he is in talks with his advisors and would soon come out with the next line of action to redeem his hard won reputation. Emmanuel Ohemeng, Broadcast Journalist, Oman Fm
Source: GhanaWeb
