JA Plant Pool over-invoiced DRIP equipment by up to 300% — Ayine

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JA Plant Pool Ghana Limited has been implicated in a major over-invoicing scheme after investigators uncovered massive mark-ups on equipment supplied under the District Roads Improvement Programme (DRIP), Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine has disclosed.

Addressing the Government Accountability Series in Accra on Wednesday, October 22, 2025, Dr Ayine revealed that the company inflated equipment prices by as much as 300 percent, triggering a full-scale financial and legal review of the $176 million contract.

“We noticed that the equipment were over-invoiced by between 100 and 300 percent. For example, one piece of equipment that cost $40,000 was invoiced at $84,000. That is over 110%,” he stated.

The Attorney General said a dedicated team of investigators is currently conducting a detailed, itemised audit of every piece of equipment supplied across the districts to build a watertight case.
“You can imagine all the equipment for all the districts, and we are going through each of them. And in criminal law, charges must be specific, and if you miss the specificity, your case will be thrown out,” he explained.

The over-invoicing revelations come alongside findings of a $2 million overpayment to the company. According to Dr Ayine, the government has already issued a demand notice for the refund.

“In the case of DRIP, JA Plant was overpaid by $2 million. The contract sum was $176 million. On the face of the contract, that is the sum that was stated. When we examined the invoices of payments, it was $178 million that was paid. So right away, there was a difference of $2 million. So we asked that the $2 million be paid back by JA Plant Pool,” he said.

Investigators also detected tax irregularities linked to the clearance of 190 pieces of equipment, which were allegedly released as though they were exempt.

“When they did the analysis, following the HS code, it came out that GH¢38.7 million of tax was evaded. So in respect of the two sums, we have made a demand on them to pay that money,” Dr Ayine added.

The revelations form part of an ongoing accountability initiative aimed at recovering public funds and ensuring financial discipline in government contracts.

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