On Friday, the lawyer for businessman Seidu Agongo and his firm, Agricult Ghana Limited, continued his cross-examination of Dr Stephen Opuni, the first witness for the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD).
Mr Seidu Agongo and his firm are on trial with Dr. Opuni for causing the state a financial loss of about GH217 million.
Cross-examination of Charles Tetteh Dodoo, a former Director of Finance at COCOBOD, by lawyer Nutifafa Nutsukpui revolved around a letter COCOBOD wrote to the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) in 2014 requesting permission to sole-source some fertilisers and agrochemicals, as well as responses from some of the companies COCOBOD purchased the products from.
He advised to the witness that in requesting authorization to sole-source, COCOBOD just needed to identify the overall cost at which it was seeking to acquire the specific product, as stated in a letter COCOBOD submitted to PPA on February 25, 2014, and the witness agreed.
"Is it also right that COCOBOD did not need to disclose the delivery period, the delivery place, or the payment terms in the letter to PPA seeking that approval?" The lawyer inquired, and the witness confirmed.
Following the prosecution's argument that Agricult Ghana Limited's letter replying to the COCOBOD request for price estimates was in violation of the PPA legislation, Mr Nutsukpui argued to the witness that all answers from Sidalco would be in violation of the PPA law.
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