Opuni deserves praise, not witch-hunt - Sam George

Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram, Sam George, has described the attempts to prosecute former Chief Executive Officer of COCOBOD, Dr Stephen Opuni, as an exercise in futility.

Some 27 charges, including willfully causing financial loss to the state, have been preferred against Dr Opuni in a case set to be called on 23 March 2018 at the Accra High Court.

Reacting to this development, the Ningo-Prampram MP said the move is an agenda to witch-hunt Dr Opuni who rather deserves praise for the manner he managed affairs during his tenure at COCOBOD

According to him, the cocoa sector saw massive improvements under Dr Opuni.

Mr George told Class News Dr Opuni’s trial is just a diversionary tactic employed by government to cover up rot under the Akufo-Addo-led administration.

He said: “This government has shown that whenever it is exposed and stripped naked and is revealed to the Ghanaian public for what it is truly made up of as a bunch of corrupt nepotistic individuals who are raping this country dry, all they engage in is diversionary tactics.

“The MD for BOST has been accused yet again for the umpteenth time in this administration of gross acts of corruption. You remember that when he was accused previously, my colleague in parliament, Honourable Ken Agyapong dared anybody in the NPP including the president to try and touch him and all hell will break lose in the NPP. Few days later, the president cleared him of all wrong doing.

“Again, he’s been accused of gross financial malfeasance by COPEC, and, again, you can see the diversionary tactics of the government trying to bring up this Opuni case which will amount to nothing. I mean this case about Dr Opuni and a private businessman Seidu Agongo is really much ado about nothing.”

In his estimation, the current CEO of COCOBOD, Mr Joseph Boahen Aidoo and President Akufo-Addo should rather be charged in court for causing financial loss to the state by halting the construction of cocoa roads.

“Look, if anybody has to stand trial in our current Ghanaian courts, it is the current CEO of COCOBOD and His Excellency the President himself, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, for willfully causing financial loss to the state… Cocoa road contracts were awarded and many of these contracts had gotten to prima seal stage, sub base structures had been put in place before the loss of the election by the NDC in 2016."

"This government, 15 months down the line, has demobilised all contractors and asked them to leave because you think they are phantom projects and you think that you want to witch-hunt some people. The rains have come already and we are about to enter the second season of rain under this administration and the prima sealing and base structure on most of those roads have been washed off, and, eventually, when this government asks those contractors to go back to site, you think that the cost of the roads are going to be the same? There is going to be variations in some instances as high as 25 per cent. Who has willfully occasioned that loss to the Ghanaian taxpayer, is it not this current CEO and the President?"