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BBC Pidgin of Friday, 11 August 2023

Source: BBC

Prosecutor find additional $590k den GHC2.7m for house of former Ghana sanitation minister

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Di office of di special prosecutor (OSP) for Ghana don find more moni for former sanitation minister Cecilia Dapaah im house.

Di moni according to court documents be $590k den GHC 2.7m.

Authorities bin arrest di former Minister on allegation of suspected corruption and corruption-related offences for July.

Her arrest follow tori of alleged plenty money and personal properties dem tiff for her house for Abelempke Accra – di pipo wey tiff di money na her house helps wey dey face trial now.

Di OSP tok say na im search three houses of di minister on 24 July, afta dem get gist say “plenti moni wey get corruption wahala dey there according to di special prosecutor act 959 section 32 (1)”.

Dem search one house for Abelenkpe, anoda one for Tesano den one oda one for Cantonments all dey Accra.

Di OSP afta im officers collect di plenti moni for the former minister im house, don direct say make dem freeze Dapaah im bank accounts.

For motion wey di OSP file for high court, im tok say “make di court confam di freeze of di accounts den oda assets of di minister as dem dey continue di investigations”.

Di minister don get four accounts for prudential bank den three for societé generale.

Di seven bank accounts get plenty moni for inside.

Na im di OSP tok di managers of di banks say make dem no allow any transactions for di accounts until say di court go tok am or im (OSP) give di bank further directions.

Di court go move di motion for di confirmation of di freezing order August 17.

Di OSP act say where di SP see say freezing pesin property be necessary for investigation im go write den direct di freezing of di property of di pesin wey dem dey investigate.

Wetin happun?

Di den sanitation minister den im husband don report give police on 4 July, say im former domestic staff tiff im moni den oda tins for dia house.

Two former house-helps, two boyfriends den one oda pesin who be one of di house-helps im father.

Di court documents wey state di facts of di case tok say di minister no reveal who dey own di $200k den di €300k.

Na im Attorney general Godfred Dame don write give di police CID say make im investigate who dey own di $200k den di €300k.

Afta di gist don go public di minister tender im resignation say im no wan make di mata turn wahala for di goment.

Na im police arrest four accused pesin for di mata den take dem go court.

Police find plenti moni den oda properties for di accused pesin dia house wia dem allege take di minister im moni buy.

On August 8, circuit court for Accra don remand five of di accused pesin.

Di court also grant bail give two of dem wey be lactating modas to di tune of GHS 1m each plus three sureties to be justified.

As di trial dey happun police on August 9 don arrest three more pesin afta di previous charge sheet don amend.

Di police don slap dem plus 14 counts wey be conspiracy, five counts of stealing den 8 counts of dishonestly receiving

Wetin next?

Civil society groups den goment watchers say dem make interested for di mata.

Dem say dem wan see how e go end.

Di Cecilia Dapaah mata don raise tori for di kontri.

Anti-corruption crusaders dey advocate say make di OSP do lifestyle audit give goment appointees.

Dem believe say no be madam Cecilia alone wey get dat kind moni for house.

Di Ghana integrity initiative (GII) den di Ghana anti-corruption coalition (GACC) don call for “transparent den comprehensive investigation into di mata”.

Dem also worry about di source den intended use of di moni for di minister im house.

Na im di two groups now tok for press release say, “di time for immediate passage of di conduct of public officer’s bill wey go vim di asset declaration regime, be now”.