The Fourth Estate has petitioned the Right to Information Commission over the Public Procurement Authority’s (PPA) refusal to release information requested under the RTI law.

The petition follows the PPA’s determination to deny The Fourth Estate access to information regarding road contract procurement approval requests that the Authority had received from the Ghana Highway Authority, the Department of Urban Roads, and the Department of Feeder Roads since January 2025.

The PPA had, in a letter dated May 29, 2026, stated that it was “unable to provide the requested breakdown of road sector procurement approval requests” submitted by agencies under the Ministry of Roads and Highways between January 1, 2025, and February 28, 2026.

In the petition, the Fourth Estate stated that it had exhausted all the required application processes under the RTI law, including an internal appeal to the PPA Board Chairman. But the Authority still failed to grant access to the requested information.

The petition, therefore, demanded that the Commission reviews the PPA’s decision. It added that the Commission should “compel the PPA to release the data, which is not exempted under the RTI law.”

The PPA’s refusal to release the information adds to a recent trend of public institutions denying The Fourth Estate’s RTI requests.

In May 2025, The Fourth Estate dragged Parliament to the RTI Commission after the legislature failed to release information on expenditure on foreign medical travels of the Speaker.

Similarly, in December 2025, The Fourth Estate took the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) to the RTI Commission. This was after YEA refused to provide a list of contracts the Agency had signed with Zoomlion Company Limited from 2017 to 2024. Others include the Commission on Human Right and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and the Ghana Police Service. 

Background

The Fourth Estate’s quest for information on procurement approvals on road contracts follows its latest investigation, which revealed how the Ministry of Roads and Highways had resorted mainly to the award of contracts under the Big Push programme through single-sourcing.

The investigation revealed that out of 107 road contracts awarded under the Big Push programme, 81 were single-sourced, and the remaining 26 were awarded on a restricted tendering basis, with none awarded under competitive tendering.

The story also showed a glaring contrast between the promises and pledges made by President Mahama and other key officials of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) when they were in opposition about limiting the abuse of single-sourcing and what’s currently happening under their supervision in government. 

After the story, President Mahama requested The Fourth Estate to submit a full report on the matter to his office. He also directed the Minister for Roads and Highways, Kwame Governs Agbodza, to respond to the allegations contained in the report.

The Presidency recently released the report of its investigations, claiming it had awarded 66 sole-sourced contracts rather than 81. However, information The Fourth Estate received from the Ministry of Roads and Highways, the Ghana Highway Authority, and the Department of Feeder Roads indicated that the total was 81.