MARTIN ALAMISI AMIDU vs. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, WATERVILLE HOLDINGS (BVI) LTD AND ALFRED AGBESI WOYOME

Ghana won the right to host the 2008 African Cup of Nations (CAN 2008), obliging the government to rehabilitate football stadia. A procurement process was initiated under the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663). Vamed Engineering GmbH & Co KG submitted a tender and later purported to assign its rights to Waterville Holdings (2nd Defendant). The government initially approved the contract but later terminated the procurement process citing financial concerns. Despite conditions precedent not being fulfilled, the government authorized Waterville to commence work. Subsequently, the government terminated the agreements and paid subcontractors for work done, which led to claims and litigation involving the 2nd and 3rd Defendants. The 3rd Defendant, Alfred Agbesi Woyome, claimed fees and interest based on alleged financial engineering services related to the stadia projects, leading to a consent judgment against the government. The Plaintiff, former Attorney General Martin Amidu, sued to challenge the constitutionality of the agreements and payments, invoking Article 181(5) of the 1992 Constitution regarding parliamentary approval of international business transactions.