The flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama has said, the special prosecutor does not have the legal premise to prosecute him on the Airbus scandal.
Reacting to the comments made by the Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu, in his report on the risk assessment on the Agyapa deal, John Mahama in an interview noted that, Mr. Amidu just wanted to “equalize”.
“I’m surprised. It’s obvious why that paragraph was put in there. I mean this damning report was coming out and I’m disappointed at Martin Amidu to have put that paragraph there just to equalize and bring up Airbus as if it was a major issue.
“I’ve had my say on the Airbus issue. No financial benefit accrued to me, not a single dollar. The point even is, there is no basis. We are talking about deferred prosecution agreement in which nobody’s name was mentioned and yet there’s been inference that it must be this person, it must be that person. Legally, he doesn’t even have any basis to even prosecute me. On what basis, on what document is he prosecuting me? Who has he spoken to, what investigation has he conducted? He should come out and tell us”.
The Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu, released a 67 paged report on his assessment of the Agyapa deal and based on it, he commented that he would have interrogated the NDC’s Presidential Candidate John Dramani Mahama if not for the upcoming elections.
Mr. Amidu says the former President who is seeking re-election is the ‘Government Official 1’ whose “brother is Samuel Adam Mahama”.
“This Office also has warrants of arrest issued by the Courts of Ghana, and an Interpol Red Alert Notice outstanding for execution in the case of the Republic v Samuel Adam Mahama and Others (known as the Airbus SE — Ghana Bribery Scandal involving the then Government of Ghana), not to talk of documentary evidence of suspected forgeries and deceit of a public officer by the three full-blood brothers in the corruption transaction to obtain a Ghanaian passport for Samuel Adam Mahama”.
“This Office has established the identity of elected Government official 1 to be former President John Dramani Mahama whose brother of the full blood is Samuel Adam Foster also known as Samuel Adam Mahama. The only reason the former President has not been invited for interrogation (in spite of all threats from some of his followers and lawyers) is the fact that he got himself an insurance as the Presidential candidate of the other largest political party in Ghana and prudence dictated that the interrogation be held in abeyance during this election season”.
Mr. Amidu also asserted that, the former President has also not offered to make any voluntary statement to his Office “despite the publication of an alleged interview containing admissions purportedly made by the former President to a Daily Graphic reporter without the full voice recording which in the meantime remains just hearsay”.