A pressure group calling itself ‘Centre for National Affairs’ has sent a petition to the Office of the Special Prosecutor to investigate former President John Mahama.
They are asking the Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu, to launch a criminal investigation against Mahama for his role in alleged payments made from the Bulk Oil Storage Transportation (BOST) to his government.
CAN, in a letter signed by its Executive Director, Samuel Odame Lartey, said it has ‘gathered’ evidence that a whopping GH¢40.5 million was transferred from BOST to the presidency under John Mahama.
The group claim the recipient’s account was Chief of Staff’s Sundries Account No. 1, with account number 1018631473188 at the Bank of Ghana (BoG), and the alleged illegal transfers were done from August 2015 until early January 2017 when then ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) handed over to the New Patriotic Party (NPP) after the December 7, 2016 general election.
“Letters covering the transfer suggest the transfer of funds is in respect of monies accrued from the security fees taken from Bulk Oil Distribution Companies (BDCs) invoices to effect payment on cost of petroleum products supplied by GOIL”, they claim.
“The account in question, we at CNA believe, is an unlawful account, as there is no statutory approval with regards to the said account in the public domain,” the group argued, adding “the reasons for payment from BOST to be made into the said account and the nature and manner by which these monies were used are not known to the public.”
They said “we also have reason to believe other state agencies were directed under the previous government to make payments into the said account. The reason for such directives to be made is also unknown to the populace of this nation.”
“We wish to stand on provisions in the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959), Section 3(1a and 1b), which empowers your office to investigate and prosecute alleged or suspected corruption and corruption-related offences under the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) and any other relevant law involving public officers, politically exposed persons and persons in the private sector to call on your office to initiate an investigation into the said account.”
The group said, “CAN, as concerned and involved citizens, call on your office to help protect the public purse by demystifying the mysteries surrounding the said account and bring light to any unlawful dealings that may have gone on.”
It attached letters issued to effect the said payments from the bank to the account in question and summary of all the transactions for the attention of the Special Prosecutor.