A highly coordinated underground deal imminent at the Sierra Leone State Lottery has been exposed with senior management, government officials and a Turkish foreign company, FORAC, implicated ahead of the ongoing privatization process.

Extensive investigations revealed that senior management officials of the Sierra Leone State Lottery in connivance with some government officials are pushing through dubious means to covertly impose a Turkish Company named FORAC, to criminally provide services to the institution under an expired license of a South African Company named Aziende Industriali di Lugano (AIL). The South African Company (AIL) whose license has expired was providing services for State Lottery.

Meanwhile, it is unclear whether such pending corrupt syndicate is upto the knowledge of key government institutions including the Ministry of Finance, National Commission for Privatization and the National Public Procurement Authority (NPPA) engaged in the privatization process.

Our investigations revealed that senior management officials aided by certain government officials who claim having undue influence to the presidency now want to impose FORAC, which never went through bidding process, to covertly and corruptly operate under the South Africa Company’s expired liecence to provide services for State Lottery.

We also uncovered that had it not been for the timely intervention of the Chairman of the National Privatization Commission, Dr Prince Harding, FORAC, supported by a Ghanaian woman, which had underhandedly sidestepped due processes,would have started operations through such dubious means aided by their schemers in government for reason (s) that should now be investigated by the Anti-Corruption Commission.

When The Satellite contacted FORAC’s Office at No 135 Wilkinson Road in Freetown, which is yet to have a sign for easy access, the Ghanaian official who spoke to our correspondent denied FORAC being a Turkish Company, but declined to respond to issues concerning their dealings with the State Lottery.
Investigations Continue