Former Special Prosecutor Martin Amidu says he does not believe Ghana will conduct a genuine investigation into the Aksa-Ghana bribery scandal, questioning the government’s choice of EOCO to lead it.
Amidu’s claims follow the August 6 conviction of Asante Kwaku Berko, a former Goldman Sachs banker and former managing director of the Tema Oil Refinery, by a federal jury in Brooklyn. Berko was found guilty on charges under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and money laundering conspiracy, tied to more than $1 million in bribes paid to Ghanaian officials between 2014 and 2017 to help Turkish firm Aksa Enerji secure a power plant deal with the Ghanaian government. He faces up to 30 years in prison at sentencing on November 10.
In an August 18 essay, Amidu, who served as Ghana’s first Special Prosecutor and previously as Attorney-General, wrote that he expects any domestic investigation to end without prosecutions, alleging the current government intends to shield officials connected to the case, including an unnamed relative of President John Mahama, while pursuing political opponents instead. He offered this as his own analysis and did not provide documentary evidence for the claim.
Amidu’s central factual assertion is that the OSP opened a preliminary investigation into the matter in April 2020, under his own tenure, but that the case later disappeared from the office’s public list of active investigations. He is calling on President Mahama to disclose what became of that inquiry and has criticised the government’s decision to place the current domestic investigation under the Economic and Organised Crime Office rather than the OSP, arguing EOCO’s leadership lacks independence from the Attorney-General.
Deputy Attorney-General Justice Srem-Sai has publicly defended that decision, telling JoyNews that EOCO, not the OSP, is leading the domestic probe because the case may involve money laundering offences that fall outside the OSP’s mandate. He rejected suggestions that the choice was intended to shield the case from scrutiny. EOCO said on August 10, through a statement issued on behalf of acting executive secretary Raymond Archer, that it was investigating “specific individuals” in Ghana, including a former minister, but was not yet releasing names.
Amidu also referenced a Supreme Court ruling he said was issued on July 29, upholding the OSP’s constitutional independence, as part of his argument that the OSP offers stronger protection against political interference than EOCO.
