NPP Politicians Must Return Stolen Money To The State To Shorten Their Prison Sentence, Or Get Pardon

The Akufo Addo-Bawumia lawless administration caused Ghana's once-thriving economy, businesses, and investments to collapse and led to the increase of corruption, money laundering, and the stealing of the government’s properties with impunity. John Mahama, the next coming president, claims that when he enters office in January, a procedure for recovering stolen funds will be put in place. I disagree with Mahama; taking office before that action will be too late; he needs to request the return of stolen money and properties now.

Political corruption in Ghana has prevented the country from making systematic progress and has also prevented its citizens from enjoying better living conditions and fulfilling jobs. Even though corruption is a problem in Ghana, unlike other countries like China, Japan, and the US, there isn't a strong law from the parliament that would throw dishonest politicians in jail. Although I have been unsuccessfully advocating for such a punitive bill for a very long time, I think very soon things will change.

Protecting the public coffers, which is fighting against corruption, one of the country's major problems, and illegal mining, which has ruined the country's waterways, ecosystems, and agricultural sector, are among the pledges made by the Akufo Addo-Bawumia administration. However, the NPP government did not fulfill its promises to the populace. Rather, compared to earlier governments, corruption rose significantly under the NPP leadership, and it was done with impunity and disrespect to the people.

It was a grave mistake for Ghanaians to accept Akufo Addo's appointment of his relative, Ken Ofori-Atta, as finance minister. Since such appointments are uncommon and simply serve to encourage corruption, I'm not sure how the public expected Ghana to be a prosperous nation. The corruption began when he purposefully shut down eight financial organizations to give his Data Bank a monopoly. The closure of the banks cost GHC 25 billion, even though the financial institutions require GHC 9 billion to function.

In the relatively short time frame between 2017 and 2024, the NPP government and its politicians were embroiled in a number of significant corruption scandals, such as the fraudulent PDS deal, the $10 million waste on the Cocoa roads audit, the $4.5 million AfCON wasteful spending, the GHC 283 million judgment debt paid, the three times the bank collaborated with Ernest Addison, the governor of the Bank of Ghana, to print new currency without parliamentary approval, and the bank's GHC 60 billion loss.

The president hired a private jet for $17,000 per hour to travel the world; Mac Manu was implicated in a $1.5 billion MPS deal; NHIS diverted GHC17 million into a private investment company; GHC3.9 million was used to purchase condoms; the government was caught in a $12 million deal for the Oslo consulate; the Sanitation Minister received GHC18k in entertainment allowances; there was a $12.5 million contract for blood distribution drones; and GHC297,585 went missing at the Kpone-Katamanso Municipal Assembly.

The never-ending tsunami of corruption scandals includes the Ministry of Tourism squandering $14 million on capacity building, and the government demolished judges' houses for the construction of a national cathedral without a foundation, which cost $58 million. The suspicious KelniGVG deal worth $89 million, the Ministry of Finance's 2017 waste of GHC697 million, the millions of dollars that Cecilia Dapaah stole, and the GHC100.2 million that Adwoa Safo received for the streetlights contract demand investigation.

Akufo Addo and Bawumia were involved in an upgraded corruption scandal that involved the theft of $330 million from $430 million in COVID funds that the World Bank had given to the government, the Agyapadie concept, state capture, and the sale of government properties. The new government must look into the corruption of individuals, such as Eugene Arhin and the late Kwadwo Owusu-Afriyie, also known as Sir John, to return the stolen funds and properties to the state.

Listing every corruption scandal involving the Akufo Addo-Bawumia administration would take an eternity; even the abuse of power and violations of the Constitution are crimes. Even though the new government has made the decision to launch "The Stolen Asset and Looting Recovery" campaign, I believe it will be too late by the time he returns to office. It is preferable for Mahama to call the NPP to refund the stolen funds because they still have more of them on hand and are working to hide them.

It is entirely wrong for Mahama to resume office next year, before requesting the return of stolen money. Since the government lost the election last Saturday, individuals affiliated with the NPP party and politicians have been either concealing or moving stolen funds. The appeal to return the loot should therefore start right away. Respondents may receive a pardon or a reduced prison term, but, if they are found guilty and prosecuted, the new administration will impose a longer prison term.