The Fourth Estate has blown an alarm on the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) for shielding President John Mahama’s flagship Big Push road project from scrutiny.
According to The Fourth Estate, the PPA has denied them access to information on procurements under the government’s flagship Big Push programme.
The Fourth Estate disclosed that on February 16, 2026, they submitted a right to information (RTI) application requesting road contracts approved by the PPA under the Big Push programme, adding that the PPA responded on March 3, stating that it is unable to provide the information as they do not approve the contracts.
The Fourth Estate in a news article highlighted a series of times their request was rejected: “In March 2026, The Fourth Estate, in an updated application, requested from the PPA information on road contract procurement that the Authority had approved since January 2025. But the Information Officer of the PPA refused to respond to the application. Under the Right to Information Act 2019, Act 989, it is deemed a refusal when an information officer fails to respond to an application.
Subsequently, The Fourth Estate, through an internal appeal, petitioned the CEO of the PPA, in line with Section 31 of the law and in the hope that the head of the institution would make a different determination from the Information Officer.
But the May 29 response to the team further affirmed the PPA’s decision to deny The Fourth Estate access to information on their approvals of road contract procurements”.
PPA’s Acting Director Legal, in a letter dated May 29, 2026, stated that the “PPA is unable to provide the requested breakdown of road sector procurement approval requests submitted between 1st January 2025 and 28th February 2026 by the Ghana Highway Authority, Department of Urban Roads and Department of Feeder Roads, together with the related follow-ups.”
According to The Fourth Estate, the PPA’s justification is inconsistent with its application, which requested information on procurement approvals of road contracts (not the road contracts), which lie with the Authority.
They disclosed that, under the procurement law, any public entity seeking to use single-source procurement must write to the Authority and justify why they want to use the uncompetitive method, or, where the method is used, the entity must seek ratification from the PPA.
The Fourth Estate stressed that the PPA’s refusal to release information adds to a recent trend of public institutions denying RTI requests.
It will be recalled that The Fourth Estate publication unearthed that the Road Ministry awarded 81 sole-sourced contracts worth over GHS73 billion in 7 months.
Following that expose, President John Dramani Mahama instructed his office to obtain the full detailed report from the Fourth Estate concerning the Road Ministry’s GH¢73b Big Push sole-sourcing contracts.
According to President John Dramani Mahama, his office is to conduct a study of the various allegations presented in the report.
President Mahama also directed the Ministry of Roads and Highways to answer all the allegations made in the report.
Speaking during a Presidential Dialogue with Civil Society Organisations at Jubilee House in Accra on Monday, March 30, Mahama explained, “I note the recent expose by the Fourth Estate on procurement processes related to the award of contracts under the Big Push programme. While sole sourcing is legal under certain circumstances under our current procurement law, we all agree that open, transparent tenders are always preferable for achieving competitive pricing and value for money.
“Although we’ve seen snippets of the investigation from the media, I’ve instructed my office to obtain the full detailed report from the Fourth Estate and to conduct a study of the various allegations presented in the report. We’re also requesting the Ministry of Roads and Highways to present a detailed response to those allegations made therein, in order to inform the government’s action on the matter,” he said.
Also, Mahama has announced that his government will introduce amendments to the Public Procurement Act to limit single sourcing.
“And it is precisely for such situations that I announced that the government will introduce amendments to the Public Procurement Act to limit single sourcing, to promote greater transparency and ensure proper value for money for the money we spend on projects. I’ve also requested the Minister of Finance to fast-track the setup of the independent value-for-money office, since the amendment to the procurement legislation will require that all single-source procurements be subject to rigorous value-for-money review,” he said.
However, following President Mahama’s request, the Presidency is yet to release its findings on the Road Ministry awarding 81 sole-sourced contracts worth over GHS73 billion in 7 months.
See the post below:
What will make the Public Procurment Authority (PPA) refuse The Fourth Estate information on the Big Push Programme?
— The Fourth Estate (@fourthestategh) June 9, 2026
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