Agyapa Deal: Kyei Mensah, Deputy Speaker sacrificed their integrity - Lawyer

A Private Legal Practitioner and self-confessed member of the National Democratic Congress, Lawyer Godwin Edudzi Tamakloe, wants the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Hon Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu and Deputy Speaker of Ghana's Parliament, to hang their heads in shame for their role in the infamous Agyapa Royalties deal.

To him, the two gentlemen sacrificed their responsibility to protect the public purse and their integrity on the altar of their parochial interests.

Speaking on Okay FM's Ade Akye Abia show, the private legal; practitioner, who is also an aide to former President John Dramani Mahama, believed irrespective of their political affiliation, the duo should have considered the bearings of their actions on the state, especially the likely financial loss and slammed them for failing in that regard.

"As at the time parliament passed the deal, the president had not even granted an executive approval requested by the finance minister on what various transactions of the Agyapa deal is even the President asking Parliament to reconsider the bill.

"Now there is egg on their faces. This is an indictment on Osei Kyei Mensah and Joe Osei Owusu who presided over sitting that day. They did everything to please Nana Addo including destroying their own reputation," he added.

President Akufo-Addo, earlier this week, instructed that the Finance Minister returns to Parliament to reconsider the arrangement in the transaction with the Agyapa Mineral Royalties Limited.

This comes after the Office of the Special Prosecutor on Monday, communicated its disclosure of findings of a corruption risk assessment conducted into the transaction.

According to Martin Amidu, the process was concluded as far back as October 15 and had forwarded its findings of the same to the Presidency and Finance Ministry on October 16.

In August this year, the OSP, as part of its mandate, requested from the Finance Ministry documents regarding the special purpose vehicle (SPV) which help the country secure about $1 billion to finance infrastructural projects.

This followed criticisms from Civil Society Organisations about red flags in the transaction.

The Minority in Parliament has described the deal as one shrouded in secrecy adding that its nature had the propensity to breed corruption, a position that the government has vehemently rejected.

The agreement which is said to be in line with the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) Act, 2018 (Act 978), was passed without support from the Minority in Parliament.