"Donation of 41m cedis to President is unethical" -Bagbin

The Minority in Parliament has requested the government to return an amount of 41 million cedis donated by a Kumasi-based farmer, Kwame Marfo, for payment of renovation works carried out on the private residence of President J. A. Kufuor.

In a statement issued in Parliament House on Friday 19 October 2001 and signed by the Minority Leader, Mr Alban Bagbin, the minority said it finds the donation to be unethical and a breach of the government’s policy of zero tolerance for corruption.

It said donations such as the one made by Mr Marfo amount to bribery and corruption, as the gesture could potentially place in the hands of the giver an undue influence over the Presidency.

The Minority claims that it is informed that the said Mr Marfo readily identifies himself as the donor of 41 million cedis for the renovation of the President’s house and eagerly and openly accepts congratulations for his benevolent action.

The statement also described the action as a bad precedent to the rest of the civil and public services, implying that officers in these services facing difficulty with official accommodation may accept donations from private individuals for the purpose of renovating or improving their private residences.

It further called on the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to reprimand the former Minister of Works and Housing, Mr Kwamena Bartels who was at the centre of arranging the “offending donation”.