Suhuyini Drops Bombshell: NDC Gov’t Can’t Avoid Scandals

The Deputy Minister for Roads and Highways, Alhassan Suhuyini, has boldly declared that President Mahama’s government cannot survive without a scandal.

According to him, it would be unrealistic for Ghanaians to expect the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government to go through its four-year term without encountering a scandal.

“There is no way this government can survive four years without a scandal”, the Tamale North MP made this known when speaking on TV3 Ghana over the weekend.

He however explained that while scandals are almost inevitable in any government, the public should avoid hastily branding issues as scandal when there is no scandal.

His comments come on the back of report by the Fourth Estate which raised concerns about procurement practices under the Big Push programme. The report highlighted the extensive use of sole sourcing and potential cost inflation, alleging that 81 contracts valued at over GH¢73 billion were awarded through sole sourcing within seven months.

The report has sparked outrage and raised red flags over possible inflated costs.

Responding to the allegations, Mr. Agbodza argued that the figures need to be properly contextualized. He clarified that only 44 percent of major contracts under the government’s “Big Push” infrastructure initiative were awarded through sole sourcing.

Mr. Alhassan Suhuyini and the NDC party accused the previous NPP administration under Nana Addo when they were in opposition for wantonly using sole sourcing to award contracts, which led to inflated contract values.

In his remarks on Tv3, Suhuyini reiterated the National Democratic Congress (NDC)’s long-standing position on sole sourcing, noting that the party still stands by its earlier criticism of the practice while in opposition.

“What we said about sole sourcing, we still stand by it. We said it was being used wantonly and led to inflated contracts, affecting quality. We still stand by that,” he said on The Key Points on Saturday, March 28.

Despite the concerns raised in the documentary, Suhuyini rejected suggestions that the “Big Push” project is embroiled in scandal.

“I was eagerly waiting to see what the scandal was. They advertised a scandal, and we waited. At best, you could describe it as a double standard or hypocrisy if past criticisms differ from present actions—but that is not a scandal,” he argued.

He further noted that the government had cooperated fully with requests for information on the contracts and had already begun publishing details proactively in line with legal requirements.