General News of Wednesday, 25 May 2011

Source: FPACC Investigative

MP Buys $430,000 House In USA In Cash

Time for MP for Tema West, Irene Naa Torshie Addo, to reveal the source of her fund…..

Corruption scandals in Ghana have plagued the nation, triggering massive government officials to purchase homes in the US and other foreign countries.

The cauldron of corruption, which in Ghana is always bubbling quietly in the background, has suddenly erupted in another real estate related story.

Parliamentary State Affairs Committee must categorically direct the government and a committee to investigate the Abuse of Authority by these government officials/Public Servants and bring those guilty to book.

We are not saying MP's or government officials cannot benefit from buying houses genuinely. What we are against is a situation where MP's and some government officials are taking advantage of their positions in certain areas to the disadvantage of other Ghanaians.

How do high level government officials and public servants who violate the trust placed in them, and the honest services expected of them get away with factors related to punishment?

In another real estate related story FPACC has investigated and discovered that the MP for Tema West, Irene Naa Torshie Addo on April 14th 2010 bought a 4,004Sq ft property HOUSE in Maryland-USA, for Four hundred and thirty thousand ($430,000.00) dollars in CASH.

Besides the four hundred and thirty thousand cash for the property, the HON. spent over one hundred thousand ($100,000.00) renovating the house.

The primary purpose of FPACC is to provide a national process through which a citizen may communicate his/her knowledge of apparent occupational/governmental misdeeds to highly experienced and accomplished investigators for evaluation and possible publication without requiring the identity of the complainant.

The FPACC staff screens the initial and follow-up reports of corruption and those which rise to the level of reasonable suspicion are provided to investigative reporters located in the respective geographic areas or those who have subject matter expertise for further action.

Fellow countrymen our country is being destroyed by bad governance, some of our leaders who are un-nationalistic with bankrupt ideas are ripping us to disaster. How can few privileged ones enjoy, whiles the majority of Ghanaians are reeling under poverty and hopelessness.

Ghana is a country of freedom and justice where the ordinary citizen demands to know how some of our leaders can cough so much CASH to buy houses in US and elsewhere while these same leaders are urging the nation to brace itself for hard times.

We at FPACC challenge the Hon MP to come forward to explain to Ghanaians and for that matter the IRS where she got this whopping amount of money to purchase the said property, when she is taking less than $5000.00 a month as a Member of Ghana's Parliament.

We also urge Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC)—the body that oversees the welfare of MPs and staff—to appoint a special committee to review and make recommendations on how some of their staffs are coughing so much CASH to acquire properties in Ghana and abroad.

Ghanaians will also like to know from the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC) why the Bill of Rights has become a stalemate.

We are waiting!

JAB- CFE, CICA, QC, Head of FPACC Investigative Unit. www.fpacc.org