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April 2nd , 2025

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THE GREAT ECG CONTAINER HEIST: GHANA’S LATEST SCANDAL UNFOLDS

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The ECG container saga has become the latest scandal rocking the country, offering a mix of mystery, mismanagement, and massive losses. The situation has garnered significant attention for its sheer absurdity, as Ghana’s energy sector faces one of the most puzzling disappearances in recent history. Thousands of containers went missing at the port under the management of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), leaving the public in disbelief and the authorities scrambling to find out what happened.

The story begins with a dramatic twist at the handover between the outgoing New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the incoming National Democratic Congress (NDC). The departing NPP government left behind a note that mentioned 3,000 ECG containers at the port, ready for clearance. However, upon inspection, the Minister of Energy found something entirely different. The containers were far fewer than reported—only 2,500 in total. This was the beginning of a series of mistakes that would escalate quickly into an even larger disaster.



The real mystery began when officials started investigating further, contacting the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) to confirm the numbers. The GPHA responded nonchalantly, stating that only 1,132 containers could be accounted for. However, ECG officials, caught in their own web of confusion, insisted they had 2,462 containers on hand. The discrepancy of over a thousand containers raised eyebrows, leading to a committee being formed to get to the bottom of the issue.

What followed was nothing short of an embarrassment. The investigation team, determined to find the missing containers, decided to count the shipments themselves. In a shocking turn of events, they confirmed the GPHA’s count, and it was revealed that 1,328 containers had completely vanished from the ECG inventory.

To make matters worse, the situation surrounding the disappearance of the containers wasn’t just about lost goods. It involved a financial mess of astronomical proportions. ECG’s shipping account had been receiving regular payments, with 5 million cedis per week meant to clear the backlog of containers. However, in 2022, the company’s managing director, Dubik Mahama, made the inexplicable decision to stop funding the account, ostensibly to see what would happen next. What happened was chaos—containers piled up faster than they could be processed, and the demurrage bills—fees charged for holding containers too long—began to soar. Within a short period, the demurrage charges reached 1.5 million cedis.

Despite these mounting costs, ECG seemed paralyzed. The company continued to import new containers, while its management could not seem to muster the funds needed to clear the existing stock. Meanwhile, ECG was paying its suppliers most of the money owed, including a staggering 90% of contract sums, even as it struggled with its port operations.

To address the crisis, ECG introduced two companies, MINT LOGISTICS and DAWARDS BOND LIMITED, to assist with clearing the containers. However, this plan raised eyebrows due to the questionable nature of these companies. MINT LOGISTICS, with its small staff, was awarded the task of clearing 1,110 containers at a hefty price of 160,000 cedis per container. This led to a total cost of over 177 million cedis. DAWARDS BOND LIMITED, an even smaller company with a staff of just one person, was given 200 containers to clear at a rate of 115,000 cedis each, amounting to 23 million cedis.

The bizarre situation continued to spiral out of control, as the missing containers began to take on an almost mythical status. Rumors swirled about the contents of the containers disappearing, only to be replaced by new shipments arriving at the port. There were even whispers that ECG cables had been melted down and sold to businesses abroad, contributing to the financial chaos.

The scandal didn’t end there. ECG’s procurement department, already in a state of disarray, became even more dysfunctional. In 2022, the department had planned to spend 1.7 billion cedis, but actual expenditures were far lower, at only 460 million cedis. By 2023, the budget had ballooned to 935 million cedis, but ECG spent an eye-watering 8.3 billion cedis instead—7 billion cedis more than planned. In 2024, ECG’s procurement spending continued to spiral, with planned costs of 1.3 billion cedis turning into 8.2 billion cedis in actual expenditure.

Faced with such rampant financial mismanagement, ECG decided to merge its procurement department with the estate department, effectively appointing someone with no experience in procurement to oversee purchasing decisions. This move only added fuel to the fire, further highlighting the deep dysfunction at the heart of the organization.

Among the key figures involved in this debacle were Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, the Energy Minister at the time, and Dubik Mahama, the managing director of ECG, who seemed to oversee the whole mess. Kelly Gadzekpo, the former Board Chairman, and Afenyo Markin, who took over as board chair, were also key players as the scandal continued to unfold. The many workers at ECG, likely unaware of the full extent of the issue, must have been left wondering what was going on behind closed doors.

As the investigation continues and the missing containers remain a mystery, the story of the great ECG container heist serves as a chilling reminder of the potential for mismanagement and corruption at high levels. The situation is still developing, and many are asking: will the missing containers ever be found, and will those responsible be held accountable?

This scandal is not only a tale of lost containers but also a story about poor leadership, financial chaos, and a government organization that continues to stumble from one mistake to another. The people of Ghana are left to wonder just how deep this rabbit hole goes and when—if ever—there will be justice for the missing containers.

 




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