Will The Old Guard Kleptocrats Who Milked Mother Ghana For 8 Years Be Allowed To Keep Their Ill-Gotten Wealth?

Well the elections in Ghana have at long last come and gone. Ghana has survived and put to shame all the naysayers and dooms-day predictors. Post-election however there is this interesting phenomenon that is of interest to my organization - Corruption and Fraud Audit Consortium (CAFAC) of Ghana – and that is: What to do with the old guard politicians and their looted wealth. Should we just follow the proverbial Ghanaian mantra of “Leave it in God’s hands (Fa Ma Nyame), or should we seek restitution? Do we even have avenues for recovery and/or restoration?

There is no doubt that all the political crooks will be seeking cover and looking for ways to hide their stolen wealth. This article will therefore seek to blow wide open the creative schemes these politicians will use to keep us in the dark so that hopefully the long arm of the law can engulf them.

1. The first and most common scheme is the use of surrogates. Whether it is bank accounts or real estate properties, politicians will always place them in the name of surrogates who will be either friends or family. The disparity between the politicians pay and possessions does not dissuade banks from welcoming their business. The politicians will use accounts in Ghana and other African countries, the US, Europe, Asia and Australia to handle their affairs. Some accounts are in the name of wives; others are in the name of mistresses.

2. The second type of scheme is common knowledge. We all know of Swiss bank accounts and others full of ill-gotten gains by senior political people who simply diverted or to put it bluntly stole the money.

3. Third is the setting up of a myriad of dummy offshore companies and laundering of millions of dollars from unknown sources. These political crooks purchase homes and mansions around the world, as well as private jets and luxury cars.

4. Another scheme is straightforward bribery by a foreign owned business. The scheme is simple – The foreign businessman or multinational will offer a bribe say $180 million to the Ghanaian politician in return for letting them build a plant. These bribes are usually funneled through a middleman, who is usually the key cog in the whole fraud scheme. He usually has cultural connections and understanding with the developing countries like Ghana and ensures that money flows to shell company accounts in Netherlands, New York, Monaco and Switzerland to name a few.

In all the four schemes outlined above, the ultimate repository of the ill-gotten wealth is either a bank account or a real estate property. Therefore we shall concentrate on the ways in which we can blow the lid on these two repositories.

According to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), the most potent and common way to expose corruption is what is known as the Tip. Believe it or not, even though it may sound very simple, the tip is a very powerful way to expose political corruption. Therefore in the coming days and months and years, our mantra should be “If you know something, say something” We are calling on all well-meaning Ghanaians who have specific information about any politician with bank accounts and properties amassed illegally to be willing to place the information in the public domain. In this regard we are also counting on bank employees who should put Ghana first and anonymously make such information available social media.

The ACFE is also states that one way of catching corruption is reconciling the lifestyle of the fraudster with his/her legitimate sources of income. If there is an outrageous discrepancy, then there is a prima facie case for corruption. Therefore if a politician is earning $4000 a month and is living in opulence and you are privy to such information, please put Ghana first and provide the information on social media.

The incoming National Patriotic Party (NPP) administration should as a matter of urgency seek a strong partnership with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). This Office is not only the custodian of the UN Anti-Corruption Convention; it is a provider of technical assistance. This is essential because many of the measures made possible by the Convention - like asset recovery, overcoming bank secrecy, and exposing illicit enrichment - are new to all States and require new skills and knowledge. If Ghana joins hands with the office, Ghanaian politicians who have turned into kleptocrats will find no safe haven for themselves or their money.

Nigeria for example has effectively recovered large amounts of stolen assets with the help of UNODC. UNODC also continues to work with the current Nigerian Government to refine and strengthen their fledgling prevention and recovery systems. They have proudly partnered with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission - in a $30 million project - to ensure that the devastating effects of corruption will stop plaguing Nigeria. This involves: strengthening the capacity of the Financial Intelligence Unit; strengthening judicial integrity; and improving anti-money laundering capacity. Such concrete initiatives can help Nigeria and Ghana to enhance good governance and financial accountability, and reduce fraud and corruption.

The next weapon to be used against these politicians is the Money laundering laws of Ghana. Ghana in 2008 enacted its Anti-Money laundering Act (Act 749) to combat money laundering and track criminals and financiers of terrorist activities. These laws target deposits which exceed certain critical thresholds and fail the smell test of being scrupulous and clean. Through these laws corrupt politicians with huge and dubious deposits may be subjected to some investigations.

Other steps:
The Declaration of Asset regime must be overhauled. Currently the method of declaring assets and scrutinizing them may not help but if Nana Addo will keep his pledge to fight corruption then all high-level officials (President, Vice President, Ministers, Legislative officers, Central bank governors, Police and Customs Chiefs, Military Generals), should sign a statement granting permission to banks (both local and foreign), real estate or investment house to disclose any personal assets they may hold. Admittedly this net will not catch the old guard of politicians bit it will be a good safeguard for the future.

The one thing that has over the years protected kleptocrats is the bank secrecy laws. But that is changing as stated earlier. This is a highly technical area which needs a careful examination. Therefore I will address that in my next article.

By Hector O. Boham, President and CEO of Corruption and Fraud Audit Consortium (CAFAC) Ghana Limited

Hector can be reached at [email protected]