The National Democratic Congress stands by its posture that ex-government officials being accused of bribery in the Airbus controversies are innocent and are being wrongly accused.
A London High Court found Airbus guilty and imposed a fine of three billion pounds (£3bn) as penalties.
The prosecutor stated in court: “Between July 1, 2011, and June 1, 2015, Airbus SE failed to prevent persons associated with Airbus SE from bribing others concerned with the purchase of military transport aircraft by the Government of Ghana, where the said bribery was intended to obtain or retain business or advantage in the conduct of business for Airbus SE”.
With regards to Ghana, the report further stated that Airbus “between 2009 and 2015 engaged intermediary 5, a close relative of a high-ranking elected Ghanaian government official (Government Official 1), as its BP in respect of the proposed sale of three aircraft to the government of Ghana.
Many have since highlighted the Mills and Mahama-led administrations as overseeing the said transaction, thereby condoning corruption.
Speaking in an interview with TV3 however, Mr. Gyamfi noted that the allegations were reckless and baseless. According to him, the ‘facts’ as contained in the judgement indicate that ‘the intermediary 5, is related to an ex-elected government official who was influential at the time’.
“There is no part of the report that says that this unnamed intermediary, related to the unnamed so-called ex-official, paid any bribe to anybody in the said judgement,” he said.
“Anyone who will challenge this should show me the part of the judgement that states that bribes were paid to the so-called ex-government official 1 or anybody.
If you read, it is clear that it was Airbus who paid those success based to their intermediaries, based on agreements they had with their intermediaries which the Serial Fraud Office in the UK is challenging.” He continued.
Sammy Gyamfi further expressed disappointment about the fact that names were being mentioned when the Crown Court of South Walk where the case was heard, even decided against it.
“There is good reason why the whole story went without names. Our colleagues from the NPP should know better.
Reasons are given for withholding the names about alleged intermediaries. It is indicated in that Approved Judgement that because investigations are not conclusive, because the alleged intermediary and ex-government official have not been heard on the matter.”
“The rules of natural justice which says ‘A man cannot be judged unheard’. The crown court of South Walk, it will be prejudicial and unlawful for them to put up the names of those persons because their side has not been heard and yet you sit in Ghana, accusing innocent persons who have not been named, whose side have not been heard, of bribery and corruption, how reckless can you be?
Even the crown court held on to the names for good reasons.”, he noted.
Meanwhile, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has tasked the Office of the Special Prosecutor to conduct an inquiry into the involvement of any public official, “past or present” who may have been engaged in the Airbus bribery scandal.
A statement signed by Eugene Arhin, the Director of Communications at the Presidency said the Office of the Special Prosecutor is “to collaborate with its UK counterparts to conduct a prompt inquiry to determine the complicity or otherwise of any Ghanaian government official, past or present, involved in the said scandal.”
“…And to take the necessary legal action against any such official, as required by Ghanaian law,” the statement added.
Source: www.ghanaweb.com
