The National Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Sammy Gyamfi, has dismissed the advice offered by the Special Prosecutor regarding former President John Dramani Mahama’s involvement in the controversial Airbus procurement deal.
This comes after the Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng, concluded a four-year investigation into the bribery allegations surrounding the deal, ultimately clearing Mr. Mahama and other officials of any wrongdoing.
Despite this exoneration, Mr. Agyebeng expressed concerns about the former President’s interactions with Airbus officials during the transaction, suggesting that such involvement by a highly elected public official could raise suspicions of a conflict of interest.
“It ought reasonably to have occurred to former President Mahama and the Government of Ghana that the familial relationship between former President Mahama and Foster and the direct participation by former President Mahama in the communications and meetings with Airbus officials were bound to raise reasonable suspicions of improper conduct and dealings notwithstanding any claims to good faith conduct and above board dealings,” Mr. Agyebeng stated.
He further advised that sitting Presidents and Vice Presidents should avoid direct involvement in commercial transactions on behalf of the state.
However, in a firm rebuttal during an appearance on JoyNews’ AM Show, Sammy Gyamfi made it clear that the NDC is not concerned with the advice given by the Special Prosecutor, emphasizing that the primary focus should be on Mr. Mahama’s exoneration.
“The Special Prosecutor, after revealing his findings, proceeded to give advice. That is his advice; we are not interested in his advice,” Gyamfi stated. “We are not interested in suspicions. We are interested in the bottom line. The bottom line is that there was no evidence found against Mahama in the Airbus Scandal.”
Gyamfi also challenged the expectations placed on Mr. Mahama during his time as Vice President, when the controversial transaction occurred. He questioned whether Mahama should have resigned simply because the military chose to do business with Airbus, a company whose agent happened to be his brother.
“The Military had decided to do business with Airbus, a company whose agent was his brother. What did we expect Mahama to do? Should he have resigned as Vice President?” Gyamfi questioned.
Sammy Gyamfi’s comments underscore the NDC’s stance that the only important outcome of the investigation is Mahama’s innocence, dismissing any additional advice or commentary from the Special Prosecutor.