“The Minority Questions How a GH¢69 Million Project Escalated to GH¢700 Million” Does that work for you?

The Flower Pot Interchange project in Accra has seen a considerable increase in cost, which has alarmed the minority in parliament. After being awarded GH¢69.5 million in November 2016, the project’s cost was increased to GH¢147 million in 2017 and is already approaching GH¢1 billion. Governs Kwame Agbodza, the minority chief whip and Adaklu MP, has questioned the government’s justification for the drastic rise, arguing that the public deserves a thorough explanation. He demanded openness about the elements that led to the escalation.

In an interview on Tuesday, November 19, Mr. Agbodza stated, “It doesn’t make sense for the cost to double or more unless the scope has completely changed.” Is the 150 meters that were added the reason why the price went up from GH¢69 million to GH¢700 million? Is it the price of materials and exchange rates? These things need to be explained by someone. During their tenure in opposition in 2016, President Akufo-Addo and Dr. Bawumia became political quantity surveyors, whining about the cost of the Kasoa Interchange while knowing the price of everything. “They need to come out and explain how a project that started out costing GH¢69 million ended up costing nearly GH¢1 billion when it was finished,” he added.

As the project draws to a close, Mr. Agbodza emphasized the need for responsibility for potential future cost variations and asked the government to address these concerns during the project’s commissioning. The amount of variety that cannot be explained is somewhat astonishing to me. Four variation orders altered the project to about GH¢700 million in September of this year. “The project is not yet finished, according to the Director of Urban Roads, so the question is, if it is GH¢700 million now, what exactly is it going to be at the final cost of construction?” he inquired.