Former Trade Minister Charged Over $1.2 Million Scandal

The former Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr. Dan Abodakpi has formally been charged for his role in a case in which former Deputy Finance Minister, Mr. Victor Selormey is being tried for transferring about $1.2 million to Leebda Corporation in the United States.

The “Evening News” quoted sources close to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), Bureau of National Investigations and the National Security Council as saying that he was charged on Thursday. Findings against Mr. Abodakpi have been submitted to the Attorney General’s office and he is expected to stand trial by next week.

Mr. Abodakpi was the co-chairman of the Trade and Investment Programme from whose funds the $1.2 million was taken from. In his submissions to the court recently, Mr. Selormey said that Mr. Abodakpi should have witnessed the signing of the contract between Leebda Corporation and the government but he failed to turn up for it.

Meanwhile, Mr. Abodakpi has told the Fast Track Court that he never appended his signature to the contract signed between the Government of Ghana and Leebda Corporation. He said although he had knowledge to the contract, he was on his way out of the country at the time of signing and also felt it was not necessary for him to sign it.

On allegations that Dr. Boadu of Leebda financed his (Mr. Abodakpi’s) daughter’s education in United Kingdom and the United States, Mr. Abodakpi told the court that his daughter’s education was financed by a friend known as Mr. Moukarzel. He said his daughter, Rejoice, schooled at East London University for her first degree before proceeding to the A & M University in Texas, US, for postgraduate studies.

He however told the court he did not know the exact amount that Mr. Moukarzel paid for his daughter’s education. He noted that he was not aware that his daughter stayed with Dr. Boadu of Leebda in Texas before moving to the student’s hostel although Dr. Boadu is his friend.

Earlier the former Finance Minister, Mr. Kwame Peprah told the court that he was fully briefed on the contract between government and Leebda. According to him, Selormey has the authority to sign contracts at various levels including the one with Leebda. He noted that although there were no witnesses during the signing of the contract, he saw nothing wrong with that since “we have been signing contracts without witnesses.”