Ghana@50 InquiryFAIRLLOP LEAVES COMMISSION STUNNED…as it admits owing Ghana@50 Secretariat US2m

The boss of a car dealership company, Fairllod International Limited, left members of the Ghana@50 Commission stunned yesterday, as he admitted they have outstanding debts to the Ghana@50 Secretariat of nearly US$2 million.

Mr. Eric Agyemang, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company, explained that Fairllod entered into an initial agreement with the Secretariat for the sale of forty Jaguar S-type vehicles in time for the 50th Anniversary of Independence celebrations in March 2007.

After an initial payment was made to Fairllod by the Secretariat in US dollars, Mr. Agyemang complained that the Secretariat's second and final payment had been made in Ghana Cedis. This, he said, left the payment made to Fairllod short by the sum of US$93,684.

Although no formal attempt was made to recover this sum from the Secretariat, Mr. Agyemang said that by October 2008, Fairllod had entered into a new agreement with the Secretariat to buy back thirty-five of the vehicles.

It was then agreed that the outstanding amount would be deducted from the sum paid to the Secretariat.

However, when questioned by Mrs. Marietta Brew Appiah-Opong and Mr. Akoto Apau, Mr. Agyemang admitted that no payment had been made to the Secretariat for the thirty-five vehicles, totaling US$1,908,000.

He claimed that the company had not been able to sell any of the cars, and had actually tried to return the vehicles to the Secretariat. Moreover, Mrs. Appiah-Opong went on to show that in the contract between Fairllod and the Secretariat, no condition of sale had been inserted stating that the cars must be sold before payment would be made to the Secretariat. Therefore, she said, the company was legally obliged to pay the Secretariat.

Realising the company's inability to pay such a huge sum, Justice Isaac Duose questioned Mr. Agyemang as to how he and his staff could have so badly misjudged the market demand for this type of car.

Mr. Agyemang admitted that Fairllod had made a grave error in buying back the cars at the price set by the Secretariat.

He said there had been some interest in the cars, but all potential buyers had been put off by the asking price.

In dismissing Mr. Agyemang, Justice Duose urged him to redouble his efforts in trying to sell the cars for the good of all concerned.