Own up to corruption now, future NDC regime may be ruthless using the law – Prof Gyampo to appointees

Renowned Political Science lecturer at the University of Ghana, Professor Ransford Gyampo has advised appointees under the Akufo-Addo government who have been implicated in corrupt practices to turn themselves in and face persecution now because they risk been handed severe punishments and prison sentences under another political regime.

According to him, NPP appointees who are embroiled in corruption-related offences are likely to get less severe sanctions while their party is in power but will face the full rigour of the law if the NDC assumes power in the near future.

He warned that the conviction of the three former employees of the National Communications Authority in the case of ‘The Republic versus Eugene Baffoe-Bonnie and four others’ should send a signal to the current appointees of the New Patriotic Party as he advised them to examine their lives and how they use public resources to avoid suffering in future.

Speaking in an interview with Ghanaweb, Prof Gyampo said “if one’s own (that’s the appointees) examination establishes culpability of corruption, one may have to turn himself or herself to the appropriate agencies to be dealt with now. Failure to do so may be more catastrophic in future regime.”

He adds that though the law on causing financial loss to the state was passed by the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the NDC appointees have suffered more under the Law than the NPP appointees. He cautioned the NPP appointees to be more careful as there would be no mercy in the future if they are found guilty.

“The law on causing financial loss to the state, though passed by the regime of the National Democratic Congress, has been used against NDC appointees more."

"This should send a signal to current appointees of the New Patriotic Party that there may be no merciful Atta Mills in a future NDC government. In other words, current appointees must ensure they stay out of deals that could give them trouble, as a future NDC regime may likely be ruthless in using the law against them.”

The Court presided over by Justice Eric Kyei Baffour, this week convicted three of the five accused persons who have been on trial in the case of “The Republic versus Eugene Baffoe-Bonnie and four others”.

The five were accused of misappropriating an amount of US$4 million belonging to the NCA.

An Israeli company, NSO Group Technology Limited, was contracted by the erstwhile Mahama-led administration to supply listening equipment at a cost of US$6 million to be used by the National Security Secretariat to monitor the conversations of suspected terrorists. Infraloks Development Limited charged US$2 million to facilitate the transaction, bringing the total cost to US$8 million.

The NCA, with supervisory jurisdiction over the use of such equipment, was asked to fund the total cost of the transaction since the National Security did not have the money to do so.

US$1 million out of the withdrawn amount of US$4 million was deposited into the account of NSO Group Technology Limited. According to the Attorney General (AG), the remaining amount of US$3 million was deposited into the account of the local representative of Infraloks Development Ltd., businessman Mr Oppong.

The case had been in court since December 2017.

The court started hearing the matter on January 16, 2018, when the state called its first prosecution witness, the Director of Legal Administration at the National Communications Authority (NCA), Abena Awarkoa Asafo Adjei, and ended on March 10, 2020, after the state, led by the Director of Public Prosecution, (DPP) Yvonne Atakora Obuabisa, concluded her cross-examination of the 5th accused person in the case, George Derek Oppong.

All the accused persons testified on their own and none called any defence witnesses in support of their cases.

Justice Eric Kyei Baffour's court, in its judgement, indicated that the state has established a strong case of causing financial loss to the state against the accused persons.