Member of Parliament for Abirem, Charles OwireduThe Member of Parliament for Abirem, Charles Owiredu, has criticised the John Mahama-led National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration for discontinuing a financial crimes case against former Finance Minister, Dr. Kwabena Duffuor.
The Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine, has announced that the state has dropped charges against Dr. Duffuor and seven others over alleged financial malfeasance in the collapse of uniBank.
The move, according to the Attorney General’s statement dated July 22, was due to the “substantial recovery” of about 60% of the alleged losses.
The decision is part of the Mahama government’s anti-corruption initiative dubbed Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL), which seeks to retrieve state funds lost to corruption and financial crimes.
But Mr. Owiredu believes the government’s approach is flawed and could promote criminal behaviour.
“The Mahama govt is making crime profitable in Ghana. How do you justify the recovery of 60% when Dr. Duffuor himself was ready to pay the 100%? I thought the operation was to recover all the loot,” the NPP MP wrote in a social media post on Thursday, July 24.
Adding to the criticism, Ghanaian legal scholar and social commentator, Professor Stephen Kwaku Asare, also known as Prof. Azar, described the development as part of a growing culture of impunity.
“There is growing concern, as Ghanaians observe these outcomes, that financial crimes are being treated as risk-free activities: loot, negotiate, refund a fraction, walk free. That is not justice. It is impunity dressed in due process,” he wrote on July 23.
He further warned that bypassing trials or convictions in exchange for partial repayments could embolden public officials and financial elites to commit similar crimes without fear of consequences.
“Without conviction or trial, there is a risk of sending the wrong message—that public officers or financial elites can bargain their way out of legal consequences. How will the State mitigate the moral hazard this precedent could create?” Prof. Azar added.
