The Director of Strategy, Research and Communication at the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), Sammy Darko, has defended the office’s decision to declare former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta wanted, amidst criticism from sections of the public.
Some have argued that the OSP should have travelled to the United States to engage Mr. Ofori-Atta, just as it went to the United Kingdom to investigate Samuel Mahama, brother of President John Dramani Mahama, in connection with the Airbus scandal.
But in an interview on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem, Mr. Darko clarified that the two cases are fundamentally different.
“An INTERPOL red notice was issued for Samuel Mahama and the three others involved in the Airbus case,” he said.
He explained that the OSP had no choice but to travel to the UK because the British authorities were unwilling to extradite the suspects, who are British citizens.
“The UK made it clear they wouldn’t extradite their citizens. That’s why we had to go there to continue the investigations,” he noted.
According to Mr. Darko, the suspects in the Airbus scandal—three white individuals and one black man, Samuel Mahama—were all British citizens and not Ghanaians.
“You can’t compare the situation to Ken Ofori-Atta. These individuals are not Ghanaians. Their country wouldn’t let them come to Ghana, so we had to make arrangements to interview them there. If they had travelled elsewhere, they risked being arrested because of the red notice,” he explained.
He also revealed that the OSP investigated former President Mahama for seven years during the Airbus case.
“When he was invited by the OSP, he made himself available. He was investigated. There was no fuss,” Mr. Darko added.
He expressed disappointment at the backlash regarding Ken Ofori-Atta’s case.
“Where were all these critics when INTERPOL notices were issued for the Airbus suspects? Nobody complained then. So why now? This is pure hypocrisy,” he said.
Mr. Darko dismissed the comparisons as misleading.
“People are just comparing apples to oranges. Some Ghanaians simply want to comfort themselves when the law catches up with them. But we are professionals. We are doing our work in accordance with the law,” he stated.
He concluded by questioning the basis of the public criticism.
“If non-Ghanaians could be placed on an INTERPOL red notice, how much more a Ghanaian like Ken Ofori-Atta?”
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