The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has formally charged former minister for Finance, Ken Nana Yaw Ofori-Atta, and 6 others with 78 counts of corruption and corruption-related offences.
This comes after the OSP in October announced its decision to officially file charges against the accused persons.
The seven others are former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta, former Commissioner-Generals of the GRA — Dr. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah and Emmanuel Kofi Nti — as well as GRA officials, Isaac Crentsil, and Kwadwo Damoa. Ernest Akore, former Technical Advisor at the Ministry of Finance, will also be charged by the Special Prosecutor.
The accused are charged with Conspiracy to commit the criminal offence of directly or indirectly influencing the procurement process to obtain an unfair advantage in the award of a procurement contract, which is contrary to section 23(1) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) and section 92(2)(b) of the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663).
The particulars of the offence describe the specific roles and identities of three of the accused individuals at the time the alleged crime occurred:
- Kenneth Nana Yaw Ofori-Atta, 66 years old, was the Minister of Finance.
- Emmanuel Kofi Nti, 66 years old, was the Acting Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority.
- Evans Adusei, 62 years old, was the beneficial owner, Chief Executive, and controlling mind of Strategic (referring to Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited, the eighth accused).
Background
Kissi Agyebeng had announced that it had gathered evidence pointed to criminal conduct on the part of some officials during the negotiation, approval, and implementation of the contracts. The OSP is expected to formally announce the specific charges and commence legal proceedings in the coming weeks.
Addressing a press conference in Accra on Thursday, October 30, Mr. Agyebeng said the OSP’s investigation had revealed glaring statutory breaches, conflicts of interest, and unjustified payments tied to the SML agreements.
The OSP had also described the SML contracts as “marred by statutory breaches,” adding that the company lacked both the infrastructure and professional competence to deliver the services it was contracted to provide.
He further alleged that the GRA also failed to submit the full agreements between SML and its third-party collaborators — a major lapse, he said, that undermined transparency and accountability in the entire process.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
