Akanni Logistics, the company responsible for supplying bulletproof vehicles to the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), has accused the military of making an “inadvertent error” in describing the five Toyota Land Cruisers delivered to it at a cost of over US$1.425 million.
In a rejoinder sent to The Herald through its lawyers, Boyuo@Law, Cephas Boyuo, the head of the chamber, suggested that the team that inspected the cars, led by a colonel, did not act diligently in its work asserting that there was clear evidence of misinformation regarding the procurement processes and the description of the armoured cars by the senior military officers.
Interestingly, Cephas Boyuo’s statement, revealed that days after what he described as a “malicious” publication by The Herald, “…the GAF, in a memo dated March 21, 2025, issued a correction regarding the inspection and monitoring report order for the five (5) Armoured Toyota Land Cruiser 300 GXR.”
The Herald’s investigations on the bulletproof cars, revealed the names of the five officers who inspected the cars as Col DKG Hooper, the Director of Inspection and Monitoring; Lt Col I Puplampu, Deputy Director Investigation and Anti-Corruption; Lt Col A Sandow, DD Outreach and Best Practices; Sgt Vander-Pallen KL, Clerk; and Genii Nmeterson, a Principal Internal Auditor with the GHQ DFC.
Akanni Logistics was silent on the bloated cost of the cars. It had priced them at US$285,000 each, although the bill of lading from the customs files quoted US$160,000 each for the six bulletproof cars, including the Lexus LX 600 2023 Model in Black colour, which eventually ended with General Thomas Oppong-Peprah, the immediate Chief of Defense Staff (CDS).
Shortly after The Herald’s publication on the cars, General Oppong-Peprah, rushed to Customs, using a company named Eyetrams Cargo Service Ltd, to work out the duty on the Lexus for himself.
Akanni Logistics’ lawyers, were also silent on how the cars were cleared from the Tema Port, although The Herald had reported that the cars were cleared freely in the name of GAF, after they were shipped to the Ministry of Defense, as per an invoice dated July 23, 2024.
This meant that no duties were charged and paid for all six bulletproof cars until Gen. Oppong-Peprah sent a letter to Customs, demanding the duty on only the Lexus, which was calculated at One Million, Two Hundred and thirty-six thousand, five hundred and Twenty Ghana Cedis (GHC 1,236,520.00) for him to pay.
Interestingly, Lawyer Cephas Boyuo, who appears to have extensive knowledge of the Lexus LX 600 2023, had earlier mentioned in a WhatsApp conversation with The Herald’s managing editor that it was imported from Dubai. However, when asked who shipped it to Ghana, he stated that he only acts as a lawyer for Akanni Logistics and not Oppong-Peprah.
According to Akanni Logistics, the GAF, acknowledged an inadvertent error in its procurement records.
It admitted that an incorrect procurement form (No. E1/2500 DFB 1997), dated January 29, 2025, had been mistakenly used for the inspection of the five Armoured Toyota Land Cruisers.
They clarified that the correct form was Form No. E1/2407, dated July 9, 2024. The military, further clarified that the five armoured Toyota Land Cruisers had, in fact, been supplied by Messrs Ramelsco Company at a total cost of US$1.3 million under Form No. E1/2407, and that the vehicles, met the required specifications.
The contract stipulated that the vehicles should be 2024/2025 models, but 2022 models were delivered. Additionally, the armoured Toyota Land Cruisers were required to be 3.3 GXR HI Diesel models, but instead, Twin Turbo models were supplied. While 20-inch alloy wheels (265/55R/20) were specified, the delivered vehicles had 18-inch alloy wheels (265/55R18).
The military inspectors mentioned that other missing features included Side Steps with Covers and Wireless Chargers.
The apology, dated 21 March 2025 and signed by Brigadier General EK Commey, is titled “CORRECTION TO INSPECTION AND MONITORING REPORT ORDER FOR ARMOURED TOYOTA LAND CRUISER 300 GXR FOR THE GHANA ARMED FORCES.”
Strangely, Brigadier General EK Commey was not part of the military inspectors’ team, and it is unclear whether he sent another team to conduct a second inspection on the five vehicles when the dispute between the Armed Forces and Akanni Logistics arose or when The Herald’s publication drew attention to the alleged misrepresentation.
He stated in the letter, “This Department apologises for the inadvertent use of a wrong Procurement Order Form (DFB 1997) for the conduct of inspection of the five (5) Armoured Toyota Land Cruiser vehicles supplied vide Ref A. The Procurement Order Form (DFB 1997), Order No. E1/2407, dated 9 July 2024, was to be used as indicated vide Ref B.
“The specifications quoted in the Procurement Order Form (DFB 1997) Order No: E1/2407 dated 9 July 2024 conform with the specifications of the vehicles supplied. “It is recommended that MESSRS RAMELSCO COMPANY LTD be paid the amount of One Million, Three Hundred Thousand United States Dollars ($1,300.000.00) being cost of five (5) Armoured Toyota Land Cruiser 300 GXR vehicles supplied”.
Akanni Logistics, maintains that these discrepancies in the GAF’s reporting have created unnecessary controversy and misrepresentation of facts surrounding the procurement process. Akanni Logistics, the company contracted to supply vehicles to the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), has accused The Herald of publishing misleading reports about its dealings with the military.
Through its lawyers, Boyuo@Law, the company formally demanded a retraction, an apology, and the removal of what it describes as false and defamatory publications.
Cephas Boyuo stated: “Our Client says that on Wednesday, 19th March 2025, you maliciously and deliberately published on www.theheraldghana.com a story titled ‘Military Chiefs divert US$1.4M armoured vehicles as retirement gifts’.”
According to Akanni Logistics, The Herald continued to publish similar reports, including articles titled “Documents expose outgoing CDS in Lexus car bribery & overpriced armoured vehicles deal” on 21st March 2025, and “CDS, others defied Interior Ministry in armoured Lexus car smuggling scandal” on 24th March 2025.
The company insisted that these publications falsely suggest that it supplied older, lower-specification armoured vehicles to the GAF while charging premium prices.
It also denied the allegation that Akanni Logistics secured the contract at an inflated price of US$1,425,000—$125,000 higher than the initial US$1,300,000 awarded to Messrs Ramelsco Company Ltd. Furthermore, the rejoinder refutes allegations that Akanni Logistics imported a 2023 Lexus LX 600 for the Chief of Defence Staff without regulatory approval.
The company pointed out that, contrary to the reports, the GAF had issued a correction on 21st March 2025, acknowledging an error in the procurement process. The military clarified that an incorrect procurement form (No. E1/2500 DFB 1997), dated January 29, 2025, had been mistakenly used during the inspection of the five Armoured Toyota Land Cruiser 300 GXR vehicles, instead of the correct form (No. E1/2407), dated July 9, 2024.
Additionally, the GAF confirmed that Messrs Ramelsco Company had supplied the vehicles at the cost of US$1,300,000 and that they met the required specifications. Akanni Logistics insists that The Herald’s publications were designed to incite public dissatisfaction and damage its business reputation.
The company accuses the newspaper of portraying it as an unauthorised military contractor engaging in bribery and supplying substandard vehicles. The rejoinder demands that The Herald retract its publications, issue an apology, and delete the articles within 12 hours of receiving the letter.
“We further demand that the retraction and apology be given the same level of publicity and prominence as the false, malicious, and defamatory publications,” the legal team stated, adding that failure to comply would result in legal action.
Meanwhile, the Mahama government is yet to heed the call to have the matter investigated and the cars, which are in the custody of the retired officers, General Oppong-Peprah, ex-Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), ex-Vice Admiral Issah Adam Yakubu, ex-Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Bismarck Kwasi Onwona; the ex-Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Frederick Asare Kwasi Bekoe; and the ex-Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Joseph Prince Osei Owusu, returned.