Investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni has petitioned President John Mahama to terminate the Youth Employment Agency’s (YEA) contract with Zoomlion Ghana Limited.
His petition follows a press statement issued by Zoomlion on April 30, in which the company announced ongoing negotiations to increase the monthly allowance of sweepers from GH₵280 to GH₵420, an increment of GH₵140.
The contract, which has been running for the past 19 years, expired in September 2024. However, its renewal has stalled following public backlash over the meagre GH₵280 monthly allowance paid to beneficiaries, which Chief Executive Officer of YEA, Malik Basintale has assured he won’t renew the contract under its current form.
Manasseh noted that he submitted his 2013 investigative documentary on the GYEEDA scandal alongside the petition.
He expressed confidence that the President would act decisively, citing past actions Mahama took in response to the GYEEDA exposé, including the termination of contracts, the passing of the YEA Act, retrieval of misappropriated funds, and the prosecution and jailing of two individuals.
“When I investigated GYEEDA (now YEA) in 2013, President Mahama took drastic actions, including terminating contracts, passing the YEA Act, prosecuting and jailing two persons, and retrieving funds. With the documentary evidence I submitted with the petition, I am confident that the President will terminate the Zoomlion contract, which is the only YEA contract that was not cancelled after my 2013 investigations, even though the GYEEDA report commissioned by President Mahama made serious adverse findings against Zoomlion,” he stated.
In his petition, Manasseh proposed that the contract be discontinued and that the supervision of sweepers be handed over to the YEA.
He argued that this would give Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs) direct control over the sweepers, who are already paid through the assemblies’ share of the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF).
“I have proposed to the President that the contract be discontinued so that the assemblies and the YEA can supervise the sweepers. In this way, the assemblies can have direct control of the sweepers, who are paid with the assemblies’ share of the DACF,” he said
Manasseh claimed that out of the GH₵850 allocated monthly per sweeper under the contract, Zoomlion retains GH₵600 and pays the workers only GH₵250. He further alleged that the company accrued about GH₵90 million in interest due to payment delays by the government.
He also accused the YEA of lacking verifiable data on the 45,000 sweepers for whom the state makes monthly allocations, contradicting Zoomlion’s claim that beneficiary records are managed by the YEA.
According to Manasseh, the former YEA CEO, Justin Frimpong Kodua, confirmed a headcount of only 38,884 sweepers, but Zoomlion failed to submit its payroll for verification when requested.
In a post on X, Manasseh highlighted further discrepancies. He cited a 2022 complaint by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly regarding absentee sweepers. When asked, the YEA could not provide data on the matter, even though Zoomlion continued receiving allocations for 45,000 sweepers.
He also pointed out that while Zoomlion bills all assemblies for refuse disposal, a service covered under the Sanitation Improvement Package (SIP), separate from the sweepers’ contract.
While advocating for assemblies to supervise the sweepers directly, Manasseh urged the President to maintain the Sanitation Improvement Package, as most assemblies lack the operational and financial capacity to manage refuse disposal independently , a situation he warned could lead to sanitation challenges.