A former Chief Director of the Ministry of Energy in the Republic of Ghana, Lawrence Apaalse, has denied discussing issues related to Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation (BOST) Company Limited with President Nana Akufo-Addo when he met the latter about three months ago.
According to Mr. Apaalse, his visit to the Jubilee House, the seat of Government, was in June to thank President Nana Akufo-Addo on his nomination as Ghana’s candidate for election to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS).
He explained that “the discussions, on that day, centred on logistics and general government support to ensure a smooth election as one of five Africa’s representatives to the CLCS.”
Mr Apaalse’s reaction followed claims by Kevin Ekow Taylor, a US-based Ghanaian social media commentator, that during his (Apaalse’s) meeting with President Nana Akufo-Addo, he raised concerns about purported corruption at BOST and requested President’s intervention.
Kevin Taylor further alleged that Mr. Apaalse’s contract was not renewed because of the issues he had raised about BOST and sought the President’s intervention.
However, in his response, Mr. Lawrence Apaalse explained: “My post-retirement contract with the Ministry ended on 5th April 2022, and I left the Ministry the same day. So I could not have been moved out of the Ministry in April as a result of a report made in June of the same year to the President.”
“I also express shock as to how such an official visit could be turned into such public falsehood AND call for a retraction of the story,” he concluded.
Energynewsaafrica.com can also confirm that Mr. Lawrence Apaalse indeed left the Ministry in April.
During a Staff Durbar held in his honour on 5th, the country’s Minister for Energy, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh announced that Mr Apaalse was leaving the Ministry to pursue an international carrier in the global maritime space.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
