Deputy Attorney General Dr Justice Srem-Sai has assured the public that President John Dramani Mahama will not shield anyone implicated in the AKSA bribery scandal.
Speaking exclusively to JoyNews’ Evans Mensah, Dr Srem-Sai dismissed concerns that the President could conceal evidence or protect officials who served under his first administration.
“There shouldn’t be any doubt in anybody’s mind that any minister who served under the first administration of the President will be involved in the AKSA bribery and then will be covered, or the President would save him or hide or conceal evidence — no, that I can tell you that is not the President I know,” he said.
The renewed scrutiny follows the conviction in the United States of Kwaku Asante Berko, a former Goldman Sachs banker and former Managing Director of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR).
A US federal court convicted Mr Berko in connection with a bribery scheme involving payments of more than US$1 million to Ghanaian government officials to secure approval for a power plant project.
The case has triggered calls in Ghana for a full investigation into the local dimension of the scandal, including the identification of any Ghanaian officials or intermediaries who may have benefited from the alleged payments.
The Deputy Attorney General has separately defended the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) as the lead agency for the local investigations, arguing that the matter extends beyond bribery and could involve other offences, including money laundering.
Dr Srem-Sai said his confidence was based on his knowledge of the President and the manner in which he operates.
“The person who appointed me — I think I have a fair idea of the things he can do and the things that he cannot do. And I don’t have that fear at all,” he added.
The Deputy Attorney General said President Mahama would allow investigators and prosecutors to pursue the facts without political interference.
“I know the President. I work with him or for him. And I don’t doubt in my mind that he will definitely allow the law to proceed regardless of who is involved,” he said.
His comments come amid renewed calls from the Minority in Parliament for the identities of persons allegedly linked to the bribery scandal to be disclosed and investigated.
Dr Srem-Sai said the Minority Leader was entitled to demand answers and that the investigations would determine who may have been involved.
“He’s entitled to want to know, even as an ordinary citizen, much more as an MP. He’s entitled to desire an answer. That answer will come because the investigations will be done,” he said.
Dr Srem-Sai, however, questioned the basis for suggestions that some individuals could be protected from prosecution.
He said he had the impression that the Minority had already reached a conclusion that someone would not be held accountable.
“I got the impression that he had already come to a conclusion that someone somewhere is not going to hold someone accountable for what has happened. And I don’t know the basis for thinking that way,” he said.
He maintained that the outcome should be determined by the evidence gathered through the ongoing investigations rather than political assumptions.
