Ayariga dragged to CHRAJ over tractors

Mahama Ayariga, Presidential Spokesperson The Progressive Nationalist Forum has petitioned the Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice, (CHRAJ) over the alleged illegal acquisition of tractors by Mahama Ayariga, government spokesperson, from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. The forum believes that the “Kubota” Tractors that were acquired by Mahama Ayariga formed part of some 2000 tractors and their accessories procured by the government of Ghana for underprivileged farmers across the country to boost food production and security in the country. Solicitors for the petitioner, Ansah Obiri Legal Consult, claimed in its four-page document to CHRAJ that Mahama Ayariga, a lawyer by profession, who bought five out the 2000 tractors, was not an underprivileged farmer and that it was against the laws of the state for him to benefit from the deal. According to the lawyers of the petitioner, the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Kwesi Ahwoi erred and breached an oath of allegiance when he ordered the release of the five of the tractors to Mahama Ayariga alone when the minister knew that the latter was not a farmer. According to the petitioners, Mahama Ayariga bought each brand new tractor with matching implements at GH¢18,000 and agreed to pay an amount of GH¢10,000 as minimum deposit for each of the tractors as required by the ministry while spreading the outstanding balance over a two year period. However, since the acquisition of the tractors, he is believed to have paid only GH¢1,000 for all the five. This comes at a time that the under privileged farmers who could not raise the requisite GH¢10,000 deposits had their tractors re-allocated to pro-government functionaries and businessmen. “We impress upon this honourable commission that the respondents used their various offices as Minister of Food and Agriculture and his association with the president as spokesperson to procure the tractors at the expense of he many underprivileged farmers in the country. The petitioner also declared that Mahama Ayariga who is not an underprivileged farmer in Ghana should not be allowed to purchase any of the said tractors. Furthermore, the two government officials abused their various offices when they engaged in acts of conflicts of interest. The petitioner therefore called on CHRAJ to investigate the issue and recommend government to compel Kwesi Ahwoi to terminate the sale and purchase agreement between the ministry and Mahama Ayariga. Source: The New Crusading Guide/Ghana

NDC denies bribery scandal

Dr. Kwabena Adjei sees some inaccuracies in the prosecution’s statement Email Print Have Your Say ( 22 ) The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has denied knowledge of the Mabey & Johnson bribery scandal levelled against some top officials of the party. The denial was contained in press statement issued Monday evening and signed by the party’s National Chairman Dr. Kwabena Adjei. It said “Records available to the party do not reveal receipts of any such funds from the said company or its agents.” A British construction firm, Mabey & Johnson, pleaded guilty at the Southwark Crown Court in London, last Friday, to charges of corruption and violating sanctions, paying Ghanaian government officials a total of £470,000 in bribes in the 1980s and the 1990s. “The party also regrets the attempts to link the NDC to the case. For the record, the NDC wishes to categorically state that it has never received funds from Mabey & Johnson Company,” the statement said. The party also pointed out what it calls “inaccuracies” in the prosecution’s statement. “For instance, former First Lady H. E. Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings has never been a member of the NDC’s Finance Committee; Mr. Kwame Peprah (Former Finance Minister) has never been Chairman of the NDC’s Finance Committee. “In the case of Mr. Baba Kamara, he was a Deputy Treasurer and not the Treasurer of the NDC; neither was he a Political Overseer of the Ministry of Roads and Highways as claimed. Indeed, the position of political overseer has never existed.” The statement noted that the party is commitment to fighting corruption and promoting transparent and accountable governance. It therefore commended President Mills for his swift and decisive action in directing the Attorney General to investigate the matter. “The NDC is ready and willing to cooperate with government in its investigations,” it concluded. Meanwhile a former Attorney General in the Rawlings-led administration, Dr. Obed Asamoah, has refuted claims citing him as having taken bribes from the construction firm. However, Alhaji Abubakar Saddique, a former member of the NDC and a minister under the Kufuor government, has admitted taking money from the company but insisted it was not bribe. Story by Isaac Essel Myjoyonline.com/Ghana

JJ Rawlings, Nigeria and Corruption

On 29 November 1999, Nobel Laureate; Nigeria’s Prof. Wole Soyinka urged the retrieval of Abacha's loot from JJ Rawlings. Soyinka said: Nigeria’s loot recovery efforts should be boosted with a formal probe into and retrieval of a $5 million sum allegedly given to the Ghanaian President, Jerry John Rawlings by the late Gen. Sani Abacha's administration for image laundering.

Speaking at the second anniversary lecture in memory of the late nationalist, Chief Michael Adekunle Ajasin in Akure, Ondo State, Soyinka said: "I challenge President Olusegun Obasanjo to use his anti-corruption crusade in repatriating our monies looted by the military regimes and the money given to President Rawlings who joined hands with General Abacha in embracing the culture of corruption which has tainted Nigeria as a nation."

Just last month, June 2009, There were calls on the Governor of Rivers State, South-South Nigeria, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi to account for how his administration spent appropriated funds totalling over Five Hundred Billion Naira about $3.6billion in the last two years.

According to credible sources, part of the money that Amaechi is struggling to reconcile in the books may have actually gone into providing funds for the ruling party in Ghana, an alleged contribution to the election of incumbent Ghanaian President, John Atta Mills.

A whopping Four Hundred Million, about $3.5 million was allegedly transferred to facilitate the process in Ghana. Former Ghanaian dictator, Flight Lt. Jerry John Rawlings (Retired) has been identified as the alleged conduit through which the huge sums were transferred to the ruling party in Ghana. Rawlings had been a regular visitor to RiverState.

During the last Ghana election, Rawlings got upset because one Victor Smith has directed a NIGERIAN financier who wanted to give money to Rawlings for NDC campaigns, but Victor Smith told the Nigerian to give it to the MILLS campaign team. This made Rawlings to fire Smith by text message, telling him to seek employment at the MILLS campaign team.

One Ghanaian said: “THEY ARE ALL THIEVES. Rawlings killed people for borrowing fifty thousand cedis and yet this idiot is running around the world coning people”.

On Friday 17 July 2009, Mabey and Johnson, a UK based company pleaded guilty at Westminster Magistrates Court in London, UK, to ten charges of corruption relating to contracts in Ghana, Jamaica and Iraq between 1993 and 2001.

The international bridge building firm is accused of seeking to corruptly influence politicians and officials in Ghana between 1994 and 1999 to land build-bridging contracts.This bribery allegation was allegedly linked with JJ Rawlings and his government.

Five of the firm's eight directors have already resigned their positions as a result of the UK Government's investigations into a range of alleged corrupt practices by this company, including dealings with Saddam Hussein in Iraq in breach of UN sanctions.

Today, the NDC - Ghana's ruling party, (JJ Rawlings party) is doing all they can to suppress this story in Ghana (widely reported in Ghana’s STATESMAN, through information fed them by a friend of mine here in the UK). One Ghanaian Newspaper wrote: Former President Rawlings has always used the slightest opportunity to preach the virtues of instilling probity, accountability, integrity and ethics into Ghanaian politics.

But this case of a British Company A little-known family who became one of the richest in Britain - accused of making excessive profits, by building what their critics call "bridges to nowhere", charged with corruptly influencing Ghanaian politicians and officials between 1994 and 1999 to gain bridge building contracts in Ghana, is a sudden twist of events.The first major British company to be prosecuted for paying bribes abroad for contracts awarded.

The paper continues: The history of bribery among NDC officials is legendary. In 2002, the former Managing Director of Ghana Rubber Estates Limited (GREL), Mr. Etienne Arthur Marie Popeler told an Accra Fast Track Court that he gave monies to Dan Abodakpi, the former Minister of Trade and Industry, Sherry Ayittey, Treasurer of the 31st December Women’s Movement and Mr. Emmanuel A. Agbodo, (former Executive Secretary) of the Divesture Implementation Committee (DIC) under the previous NDCAdministration to influence the divestiture of GREL.

The 51-year old Belgian said he paid $1 million bribe to the 31st December Women’s Movement (31st DWM), an NGO run by Rawlings’ wife, for his French company SIPH to secure GREL. Sherry Ayitey is back under the Mills-administration as Minister for Environment and Science.Another bribery and corruption scandal hit the Rawlings administration in 1995/96 when CHRAJ conducted investigations into allegations of corruption and illegal acquisition of assets made against four ministers of state and some senior government officials.

The case involved Col E.M Osei-Owusu (Rtd), a former Minister of the Interior; P.V. Obeng, Presidential Staffer, Ibrahim Adam, Minister for Agriculture and two others from the Agriculture Ministry and Adjei Marfo, Chief executive officer of a state owned company.

The Commission made adverse findings against the three of the officials and exonerated one for lack of evidence. Rather infamously, the government presided over by President Rawlings at the time issued a White Paper contesting the findings made by the Commission.

“To the outside world, Rawlings maybe a hero, but to us Ghanaians, he is a crook”, one Ghanaian Insisted. To my question: “is Ghana’s successful democracy because of Rawlings or in spite of him”? He said, “Rawlings despises democracy, but as a result of local and international pressure he had no choice but to step aside”.

Towards the end of Rawlings reign, Ghanaian economy was reeling under heavy debt, high inflation and large budgetary deficit. Ghana needed IMF/World Bank Loan to survive. (Even till date, a large chunk of Ghana Budgetary needs is still met through international aid). Rawlings was told in no uncertain terms, that Ghana must democratise.

Immediately after Obama’s speech to Ghanaian Parliament, Rawlings was interviewed by Komla, a journalist. Mr. Rawlings who has become known as the accuser of everyone else except himself, said Ghana’s strides in democracy was nothing to write home about. When given the opportunity by Komla to shed some thoughts on the visit of President Obama, he used the opportunity to lambast everyone from President Mills to Ex-President Kuffour. The Western countries from George Bush to Tony Blair were not left out.

During 'Ghana Decides 08' when Baroness Amos from Britain led a Commonwealth delegation to his house, He lambasted everyone and even questioned the essence of democracy.

When Rawlings gave a speech at Oxford this year, he questioned the use the rule of law and principles of democracy in governance.

Of course, a man that overthrew a constitutional government in 1981- which is treason; murdered military leaders and generals without due process of law; killed three civilian high court judges and engaged in rampant corruption must have no regards for constitutional rule.

Today, there is stable democracy in Ghana, but that is in spite of JJ Rawlings and not because of him. Ghanaians know what they went through to get where are currently.They also know that the reality in Ghana is not exactly as portrayed by the outside world.

Those that actually follow events in Ghana know that elections are still marred by violence. Violent crime is endemic. Drug gangs are on the prowl and corruption is widespread. But their military have been severely weakened and kept busy by peace keeping activities outside the shores of Ghana – especially during Kofi Annan’s tenure as the UN Secretary General.

Moreover, Ghana is essentially a peace-loving Nation; their Hausa/Muslim population is a minority and thus kept in check. There is healthy rivalry between the major ethnic groups.

To the proponents of a ‘JJ Rawlings’ for Nigeria, my question is this:

Let us suppose Sani Abacha had killed Moshood Abiola, then went ahead and killed Olusegun Obasanjo and Oladipo Diya, then annihilated Babangida and Buhari for their later day opposition to his antics, sprinkled in the killing of some opposition Supreme Court Judges and courageous journalists.

Meanwhile he had killed Musa Yar’Adua, Rewane, Kudirat and Ken Saro Wiwa. He then proceeded to get himself nominated by his “5 fingers of a leprous hand” political parties in 1998 as their consensus presidential candidate and “won” an election against himself.

Let us also suppose that in 2009, ten years after, a combination of local and international pressure, fed by mass demonstrations and fightings for democracy eventually forced him aside. Then Afterwards, Nigeria insists on democracy that lasted for the next decades, no matter how imperfect; Would you consider Abacha a hero or a villain?

A revolution is needed in Nigeria, but not a bloody revolution. Rather than waiting for “our own JJ Rawlings”; Rather than indirectly inviting another military coup - yes that is what it is, all those advocating a bloody revolution are, just cowards that refuse to acknowledge that they are indeed wishing for a military coup -We need a strong and organized civil populace, we need a transparent and independent judiciary that can stand up to our governments and bring justice to our people.

We must be very careful of what we wish for, lest it come back to haunt us! The events of 1993 is enough warning!

So what do you, think? Rawlings, hero or villain, join the debate here

Read also Africa, Strong Institutions versus Strong Men

and Nigeria Needs Strong Institutions Not Strong Men

Written by Daniel Elombah

elsdaniel@yahoo.com

NPP Demands Financial Accountability From Akufo Addo

NEW. Watch live television from Ghana plus the latest Ghanaian movies plus OBE TV.

We all know that time is of the essence for Akufo Addo to act respectfully toward the entire New Patriotic Party (NPP) membership across the country including those outside and give accountability of moneys given to him by John Agyekum Kufuor for the 2008 presidential campaign. Akufo Addo must realize it is cynical for him to think that the millions of dollars given to him by NPP and Kufour to run the campaign was his personal money; there must be accountability as soon as possible to the NPP organization.

Nananom, Ladies and Gentleman Akufo Addo should return the remainder of the campaign’s money during the 2008 campaign to NPP general accounts committee as soon as possible. The millions of dollars that went to Akufo Addo is a huge amount that was stuffed directly into Akufo Addo pockets by John Agyekum Kufuor. Akufo Addo knows that we who know the numbers believe that half of the money has been kept. Akufo Addo is using it now for his political ambitions, which won’t take him anywhere. Ghanaians and most NPP members across they country have already decided not to waste their time again on him. He is not presidential material for the NPP. This is what is on the ground now in Ghana. This Akufo Addo must choose patriotism over his political ambition and show the interest of the NPP as John Agyekum Kufour did by selling his family property to help NPP to win power. Akufo Addo should return the residual money as Kufuor sold his property to create for this NPP institution interest; rather than orchestrate his failed presidential bid using these corrupt political tactics against Kufour and other innocent people.

Based on my investigation from some constituencies across the country and information from the deep throat in the head office in Accra, Akufo Addo is currently using these monies to mobilize his campaigns for 2012 while some party offices in some constituencies are closed. In addition the party needs funds to organize their upcoming December 2009 delegate conference to choose the national executives. Some people will think that campaign monies are not accounted for and there is some truth in it; if one uses his personal money he doesn’t need any accountability. But in this case the money that was spend was the party’s money that was raised by party members in the interest of the party. Therefore there must be accountability. There is no obvious reasons why such huge monies should not be accounted to the finance committee of NPP. Now Boakye Agyarko the failed NPP presidential aspirant who has become Akufo Addos campaign ambassador is currently using the remainder of the NPP money and running Akufo Addo’s campaign where they have started to open their 2012 presidential bid campaign offices in some constituencies. While the party cannot carry on its day-to-day activities; Akufo Addo who will be 70 years old is an arrogant and opportunistic individual who continues to think that the violent acts and pompous behavior he always exhibited within the NPP and the creation of a faction in the party makes him untouchable. A majority of NPP members I talk to does not need a 70 year old man to lead the party while there are young visionary people who can lead the party successfully to win 2012 general elections.

Nobody has ever created a faction within the UP tradition since Akufo Addo and his uncle started one in 1979 he has continued this foolishness up to date. It is imprudent for Akufo Addo to think that the NPP is his family dynasty that any revenue that belongs to the party can be kept for his personal use. If this is the way he thinks then he will have a serious beef with some of us who are UP /NPP/PFP members across the country. The majority of us who know the history of this great organization believe our ancestors did not sacrifice and shed their blood to build this organization for Akufo Addo and his family’s personal financial interest. We have had enough of Akufo Addo’s aggrandizing behavior that has already alienated a lot of people already in Ghana towards the NPP. In order for Akufo Addo to avoid harassment from NPP members soon he should unequivocally return all the NPP money in his possession. I have this message for all NPP members who support Akufo Addo. You are the ones to be blame for his stupidity and the faction he has created with the current NPP. You guys need to wise up and stop him and his nonsense; he cannot carry on this behavior for unity. Nobody is scared of him. The NPP is bigger than him and his cronies. The people of Ghana are bigger than any politician can ever be.

From: Nana Kofi Amankwah (New York) Source: Amankwah Nana kofi

Source: Amankwah, Nana Kofi

Mabey & Johnson: What will Mills do?

NEW. Watch live television from Ghana, the latest Ghanaian movies and OBE TV.

The government’s response was unsurprisingly typical.

“President Mills has become aware of a judgment in London, convicting a British company, Mabey and Johnson of and its directors after they pleaded guilty to making corrupt payments to certain Ghanaian public officials,” chief of staff, John Newman said in a statement.

“President Mills has instructed the attorney general to request for detailed information from the authorities in the United Kingdom about the matters that have resulted in the conviction. This is to inform a course of action on the matter to include investigations in Ghana.”

If you know Ghanaian politics, you won’t keep your fingers crossed. There will be no “course of action”. That is to say that no one will be punished and the government will go to great lengths to throw dust into our eyes, telling us some cock and bull stories about the lack of evidence or some other meaningless mumbo jumbo to whitewash the named officials. We are going to be fed with a lot of crap about what happened and what did not happen and at the end of the day, it will be like Mabey and Johnson never happened.

The corrupt deeds for which Mabey and Johnson is being punished took place whiles our current President was vice President under the Rawlings administration. The stinking dossier presented by Britain’s Serious Fraud Office indicates that people very high up in the government took huge sums of money from the British Company to promote the firm’s commercial interests here.

Some of the monies were paid to people who had been tasked with the responsibility of raising money for the ruling party at the time – which is the ruling party now. Some of the monies undoubtedly went into the NDC’s war chest that helped Rawlings to win his second term as a civilian president with Atta Mills as his vice.

Whether he cares to admit it or not, President Mills benefitted from the bribes that were taken by the likes of George Sipa-Yankey and Kwame Peprah. They didn’t stash all the cash in their private accounts. Some of it went to the NDC. Mills knows about it and so does Rawlings.

If President Mills tries to take any action against the named officials, he would come across as a turncoat – betraying the party’s cause. Under the circumstance therefore, his best option is to pretend that he’s going to do something, whiles Ghanaians wait and wait and wait – until we either forget or get some other scandal to blow Mabey and Johnson into the dustbin of history.

Every Ghanaian with pubic hair knows that contracts are not always awarded to those who can best execute the job. They are often given to those who are willing to return the favour by offering kickbacks. Conventional wisdom has it that the kickback is usually ten percent of the contract amount. NDC took these kickbacks under Rawlings – despite all his rants about “probity and accountability”. NPP under Kufuor did no different. In fact, Kufuor allegedly took the monies himself – and kept them in sacks in his office, much to the annoyance of his party chairman who complained bitterly and publicly about it.

So the party in power always uses its power to award contract to raise funds for its electioneering. That is why the ruling party is always rich and the opposition party is almost always broke. Just cast your mind back to the elections last year. If the ballots had been awarded on the basis of the wealth of the contesting parties, the ruling party at the time (NPP) would have won the polls by a landslide. They had money – too much of it – to splurge on gigantic and glossy billboards yet people lined up to give them more. At one of their fund-raising events, people holding sacks of cash were turned away because they didn’t come on time and the venue was full. People came to give because they knew that they more they gave, the more contracts they would receive.

The NDC, on the other hand, struggled to raise funds. Whiles the NPP sold out its fundraising tickets, hoards of the NDC’s were left unsold. They were eventually forced to call off the event.

That was in 2008.

At the next election in 2012, you can bet your last pesewa that there will be a role reversal. The NDC will have more cash and the NPP will struggle to raise money. Businessmen will run to donate to the NDC and the NPP will be hard-pressed to organise a decent fund-raiser.

When that happens, remember Mabey and Johnson.

They are not the only ones who have bribed and corrupted public officials like George Sipa Yankey, Boniface Siddique, Ato Quarshie, Obed Asamoah and Kwame Peprah. There are several other companies who pay cash for contracts.

President Mills knows that this happens. But his hands are tired. He can’t do anything without displeasing his party faithful or jeopardising his own political career. And that’s why he will do nothing.

Source: www.atokd.com

Obed Asamoah: I am innocent of bribery allegations

Obed Asamoah, was the Attorney General under the Rawlings administration The Attorney General under the Rawlings-led government Dr. Obed Asamoah has pleaded innocent in the case of bribery scandal that has rocked some members of the then government. He told Joy News at the time he took over as Attorney General in 1993, the contract with the UK construction firm; Mabey & Jones had been signed with its modus operandi clearly firmed up. Several members of the then NDC government, some of who are in President Mills administration, stand accused of collecting bribes from the construction firm, before high profile projects were undertaken, and Dr. Asamoah’s name had come up. He was then a member of the Finance Committee, and the principal legal advisor of government at the time these illegal payments were made. Asked if he suspected any shady deals by the company with his colleagues Dr. Asamoah answered; “I did not, because I didn’t know anything about this. No official discussed anything like this with me. Even at the time I assumed the position as the AG this contract didn’t come to our notice." He also argued some of the ministries had their own legal officers who entered into the certain agreements without recourse to the Principal legal advisor, the AG. He said the Finance Committee at the time did not approve contract, and expressed utter shock the linkage to the scandal. He insisted he could not be bribed into taking decisions that will be detrimental to the country. Dr. Asamoah also pointed some of the expatriates could possibly be framing up some of his colleagues, insisting, the monies involved is too small to be called a bribe. He lauded President Mills’ directive for a swift investigation into the matter in order for the full details to unfold. Story by Nathan Gadugah/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana

We Bribed NDC

By Daily Guide - Daily Guide

George Sipa-Yankey

Are still a minister?

The only way one can win the race of life is to complet the inherent lfe-cycle set before him/her - By: kofi beng More Quotes | Submit a Quote

MABEY & JOHNSON (M&J), a British engineering firm has admitted paying £470,000 in bribes, to leading members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Government and additional £750,000 into a ghost fund dubbed, 'Ghana Development Fund', between December 1994 and 18th August 1999, to gain contracts worth £26 million.

Seeing the opportunity in doing business with the 'world's most corrupt regimes', as stated by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) of the United Kingdom, M&J went on further to bribe government officials of Jamaica and Iraq among other countries, to get the juiciest of contracts in the respective countries.

Ghana is to benefit from reparation of £658,000 to be paid by the British firm.

The Jamaican officials have since resigned from government even before the court ruling on Friday, while the Ghanaian officials implicated in the high-profile bribery scandal, including Ministers of State, continue to wine and dine with President Atta Mills who had promised to fight corruption with all his might.

At the time of the court ruling on Friday, DAILY GUIDE learnt that Dr George Sipa Yankey, Minister of Health, who took £15,000 as his share of the booty, was with the President in far away Washington DC attending the United Nations General Assembly.

Sources said the President had been informed about the culpability of some of his ministers and top officials in the damning bribery scandal, but he blinked over it, pretending that nothing was amiss.

Even NDC publications had given indications about the Mills appointees' neck-deep involvement in the bribery and corruption scandal.

Other NDC gurus mentioned in the scandal are Kwame Peprah, SSNIT Board Chairman and former Minister of Finance, who incidentally had served prison terms with Dr Yankey over the Quality Grain scandal; Alhaji Baba Kamara, Ghana's High Commissioner designate to Nigeria and former NDC National deputy Treasurer; and Alhaji Amadu Seidu, Minister of State at the Office of the President, Osu Castle.

The bribery payments were laid bare at the instance of Judge Rivlin, at the Southwark Crown Court in London last Friday September 25, 2009.

M&J admitted guilt and accepted the ruling of the court indicating no recourse for appeal. “However we would submit ourselves to the UK Serious Fraud Office for monitoring of any future international business transactions”.

A company representative told DAILY GUIDE at the court soon after the ruling that they have contacted the President of Ghana, John Evans Atta Mills, prior to the sentencing to discuss any reparation.

“The President delegated one Dr Dodoo of the Office of the President to continue with further discussions”, he added.

Before delivering his sentence, Judge Rivlin, indicated that he would direct maximum reparations to be paid to Ghana and Jamaica if the respective countries would accept, “but if they reject it, the Serious Fraud Office can pay it to any charity they want”.

Consequently, Ghana's acting High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Martin Quansah, who was present in court, contacted the Office of the President which gave him the go-head to inform the court of the President's willingness to accept the reparations.

The court was therefore informed of the willingness of the Government of Ghana to accept the reparations as announced by the lead prosecutor, QC John Hardy.

QC Hardy relayed the Ghana government message to the court when he was making a statement to accept the verdict of the court.

Meanwhile, a cross session of Ghanaians, including lawyers and some UK anti-corruption organisations who were present in the court, called for the immediate arrest and prosecution of the Government officials and party gurus mentioned in the damning bribery scandal.

They were of the view that the said officials need to face the full rigors of the law to serve as a deterrent to other government officials who intend to take bribes.

Ghana

•Dr. George Sipah-Yankey (Minister of Health, NDC) £15,000

•Dr. Ato Quarshie (ex-Minister of Roads and Highways, NDC) £55,000

•Saddique Bonniface (ex desk officer ministry of Finance) £10,000 + £13,970 + £2,500 + £500 (school fees)

•Amadu Seidu (Minister of State at the Castle, NDC) £10,000

•Edward Lord-Attivor (Chairman inter-city transport) £10,000

•Edward Attipoe - £10,000

•Danny Ofori-Atta also known as Kwame Ofori (EGLE/NDC ) -The 'agent'

•Baba Kamara (aka I. B. Ibraimah), (High Commissioner designate to Nigeria and a former deputy National Treasurer of the NDC) – 'Agent' £750,000 dubbed the "Ghana Development Fund" ("GDF")

•Kwame Peprah- SSNIT Board Chairman and former Minister of Finance

Madagascar

Zina Andrianarivelo-Razafy (permanent representative at the UN) $5,000

Lt-Col Jean Tsaranasy (former public works minister) £33,000

Jamaica

Joseph Uriah Hibbert (former works minister) £100,000

Angola

Antonio Gois (former general manager state bridges agency) $1.2 m

Joao Fucungo (former director state bridges agency) $13,000

Mozambique

Carlos Fragoso (former head of DNEP, directorate of roads and bridges) £286,000

Bangladesh

Khandaker Rahman (chief engineer, roads & highways dept).

Culled from The Guardian, UK

From Ernest Peprah Antwi, London

Source: Daily Guide - Daily Guide

“Show Ministers The Exit"--Kabila Urges Prez Mills

A leading member of the People’s National Convention (PNC), Kwabena Bomfeh Jnr, is asking all NDC Ministers implicated in the Mabey and Johnson scandal to “resign honourably and courageously, on the basis of true probity and accountability.” According to him, the likelihood of these government appointees influencing the Attorney-General’s investigations into the case whiles still in office, cannot be ruled out. Commenting on the Mabey & Johnson ruling and its implications for the country on “Kokrokoo” on PEACEFM, Mr. Bomfeh, aka Kabila, entreated the President to act swiftly on the case as “it can and has already painted Ghana black to the international world.” “I am calling on President Mills to fire all of them and show them the exit,” Kabila said. The outspoken CPP National Youth Organizer questioned the morality of ex-president Rawlings in pushing for a quick and decisive action by President Mills on the scandal, when he (Rawlings) failed to act on the issue whiles he was in power. The former President, Flt. Lt. Jerry John Rawlings at the weekend “urged the government to act quickly and decisively on the bribery allegations involving the UK-based construction company; Mabey and Johnson, and some political appointees” in Ghana. "Probity, accountability and service to the people were the basis upon which the National Democratic Congress (NDC) was founded,” Mr. Rawlings said in a statement he personally signed. Mr Bomfeh also took at a swipe at the prosecutors in the Mabey and Johnson case, for not giving the Ghanaian ministers, shamed in the scandal, the opportunity to redeem their image in the Courtroom. “I don’t understand why the UK (Crown Court in London) failed to invite the implicated ministers to testify in court, I’m a bit perplexed…it was important for the final recipients to be questioned and clear their name,” he stated. Source: Alex Ofei/peacefmonline

Mabey & Johnson Bribery Scandal: Cover Up Attempt?

M&J Bribery Scandal: Cover Up Attempt?

NEW. Watch live television from Ghana, the latest Ghanaian movies and OBE TV.

... Public inquiry not necessary in Mabey & Johnson bribery - AG ... No time line has been given to AG

The Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mrs Betty Mould Iddrisu says the bribery scandal that has hit some present and past government officials does not warrant any special commission to investigate.
She said the nature of the issue is such that the president does not need to launch any full scale public inquiry into it.
Mrs Mould Iddrisu was speaking to Joy FM on calls for the allegations to be investigated by a Commission of Inquiry just as is happening in the case of the Ghana@50 celebrations.
A UK court Friday named a number of past and present government officials as having received bribes from a UK construction firm, Mabey & Johnson during its operations in Ghana in the '90s.
Some of the names mentioned include Kwame Peprah, Alhaji Boniface Abubakar Saddique and Dr. George Sipa Yankey.
Following the court’s ruling, president J.E.A. Mills has instructed the A-G to investigate the issues to inform government’s next line of action.
But a section of the public thinks the seriousness of the allegations require a public inquiry.
Mrs Mould Iddrisu however disagrees. She said if the investigation is left in the hands of a Commission of Inquiry, “before you know it, the evidence has been corrupted.”
She said her own investigation would be sufficient.
The A-G also stated that no time line has been given for her to complete her investigations as “there can never be a time frame for investigations.”
She said new information usually keep coming up which makes it impossible to put a time frame to any investigation, assuring however that investigations would receive committed attention.

Source: Myjoyonline

Mabey & Johnson Bribery Scandal: 'Bribe takers' must resign

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The Executive Director of the Ghana Integrity Initiative, Mr Daniel Batidam, wants persons named as having collected bribes in a UK court to resign from public office.

He said those of them who are currently holding public office should step aside and clear their names.

Mr Batidam said he was not surprised about the court’s ruling citing some Ghanaian public officials as having engaged in corrupt practices.

His worry though is that the story proves that corruption can “take place in such a nebulous way that unless and until something happens and there is reason for a revelation to be made, we might just think that people and firms are innocent and doing business in the right way while in fact they are actually living at the expense of ordinary people.”

A UK construction firm, Mabey & Johnson, last Friday confessed in court in the United Kingdom to dolling out thousands of Pounds to Ghanaian public officials in the 1990s in order to influence government decisions affecting their business in the country.

During that period, the company constructed bridges in the country and said it paid bribes to government officials through agents fronting for persons in influential positions.

Some of such persons, who are in government today, Mr Batidam believes, would be doing themselves and their reputation a great deal of good by resigning.

He told Joy FM that the trouble is worth it.

Source: Myjoyonline

Mabey & Johnson Bribery Scandal: Obed denies involvement

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The founder of the Democratic Freedom Party, Dr. Obed Yao Asamoah, has reacted to the land mark ruling in a UK court in which a number of Ghanaian politicians have been named as having received bribes from a British Construction firm, Mabey and Johnson, in the 1980s and 1990s.

The name of Dr. Obed Asamoah, one time Attorney General and Minister of Justice was mentioned as someone the company attempted to influence.

In an interview on Sunday, however, Dr. Asamoah stated categorically: “I don’t know anything about this contract. I had no hand in the award of those contracts, so I was surprised to read that there were attempts to soften the hands of people like me”

The former Attorney General and Minister of Justice said, “I never met any officials of the company. No official of the company ever spoke to me.”

At any rate, asserted Dr. Asamoah, “you can’t influence me with money to approve a project. People who know me know that I can’t be influenced with money. If the project is sound and there is no corruption involved, and it is good for the country, you don’t need to approve it.”

Dr. Asamoah lauded the decision of President Mills to have the allegations investigated. “I definitely support government’s decision to set up the probe.”

A construction firm in the UK, Mabey and Johnson on Friday September 25, pleaded guilty to making some payments to the tune of £470,000 in bribes to some Ghanaian politicians in the 1980s and the 1990s.

Among several high profile public officials mentioned, the Health Minister Dr. Sipa Yankey was named as having received a total of £10,500, while former Works and Housing Minister in the erstwhile NPP regime Alhaji Sidique Boniface allegedly received some £500 for school fees while studying as a student in the UK.

Dr Ato Quarshie a former Works and Housing Minister was also named to have received a cheque for £55,000 in 1995.

One Mohammed Seidu and Edward Attipoe are also believed to have received £5,000 and £10,000 respectively.

Source: Ghanaian Times