Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, the Member of Parliament for North Tongu, will spearhead a demonstration today against the sale of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT)’s sixty percent ownership in four hotels to Bryan Acheampong, the Minister of Food and Agriculture’s owner of Rock City Hotel.
The procedure that resulted in Rock City being chosen as the most likely candidate to buy the hotels has been questioned by Ablakwa, organised labour, and other interested parties.
The North Tongu politician said in an interview with Citi News monitored by Puretvonline.com that the demonstration is intended to pressure the government to stop the procedure.
“Why doesn’t the honourable Bryan Acheampong, who is seated in the cabinet, use his knowledge and ability to turn around hotels to benefit all of us, so that we can turn these establishments around, if that is actually their intention?
“Why, given that he now owns 60% of the controlling shares, will he only apply his experience once he has purchased it? As the only shareholder in Rock City, he will immediately profit from this. How, after all, do you explain this? Why is he in the cabinet, then? Why do we have to pay him?
He went on to say that the transaction is an obvious example of state takeover by government appointees.
“It is clear that this is all about state capture, and that is why all of us must rise up. If the numbers are massive, and I have no doubt that we are going to have a massive turnout, we will send a very clear message to the president: Enough of the state capture.”