Presidential Aide for Government Communications, Dr. Sammy Ayeh, has accused the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) of deliberately slowing down its own processes to enable high-profile suspects to eventually escape accountability.
According to him, the recent charges filed by the OSP against former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta and seven others raise serious concerns about timing and intent, especially given the number of counts involved.
The OSP on November 18 charged the former Finance Minister and 7 others with 78 counts in connection with corruption linked to contracts awarded to Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited (SML).
Speaking on Joy Prime and monitored by NewsDesksGH on November 19, Dr. Ayeh said, “I think that there’s some foul play going on between the OSP and most of the matters that he has taken up.”
He questioned how long it would realistically take for such a large number of charges to be investigated and prosecuted.
“8 people have been charged. 78 counts have been given, how long do you think it will take for these 78 counts to be investigated, and interrogated,” he questioned.
He added, “Looking at the track record we have in our system, it will take more than 20 years for this to be done.”
Describing his view as a personal observation, he claimed, “This is a calculated attempt to make sure that these people are left off the hook.”
“I don’t know where the sloppiness is coming that today we have to take several months before the charges are filed, and when the charges are filed, over 78 of them. how can these charges be substantiated between a limited time frame.”
He further alleged that the OSP appears to be positioning itself to take over cases before other state agencies can get the chance to do so.
“It does appear to me that it is an agenda for him to pick and take over cases that attorney general and other state agencies can take over and actually run them,” he stated.
He cited other cases such as the one involving Paul Adom-Otchere, whose tenure as Board Chairman of the Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL) is under investigation by the OSP, as well as the Cecilia Dapaah case which began after the OSP commenced investigations when large sums of cash and other valuables were reported stolen from her residence.
“These are significant cases that we think that the people of Ghana could’ve gotten some results from it.”
“I see some pieces in play where some agenda is being set to allow all these people to go,” alleged Dr. Ayeh.
