Search for AMERI documents; Jinapor's phone seized

Officers of the Criminal Investigative Department have reportedly seized the phone of the former Deputy Power Minister John Jinapor in a desperate search for documents and information about the controversial AMERI power agreement.

He told Joy FM's Parliamentary correspondent Joseph Opoku Gakpo the officers besieged his home, Friday morning as they continue a hunt for incriminating documents.

He was on his way out to Parliament when the officers said to be wielding AK 47 rifles accosted him and demanded a search in his residence.

Mr Jinapor is the third ex-government official linked to the AMERI power agreement to have suffered a similar fate.

The first was the ex-Power Minister Dr Kwabena Donkor who claimed officers budged into home early this week, seized his laptops, pen drives but resisted their attempts to take his phone.

Dr Kwabena Donkor
The officers were reported to have come with a warrant.

The next was the Technical Advisor for the AMERI deal, Francis Dzata whose house was also searched by the CID apparently over the same matter.

John Jinapor’s search ends a week of aggressive hunt for information on the controversial AMERI power agreement.

The $510 million agreement was signed in 2015 to shore up Ghana’s energy reserves and to help mitigate the power crisis at the time.

Critics, including the then opposition NPP insisted the country has been shortchanged by an over-priced power agreement.

Other think tanks, including ACEP, IMANI all insisted the power agreement could have been signed for $350 million.

IMANI Vice President Kofi Bentil said Turkish power giants AMERI had been gifted with a whopping $150 million for doing little or no work. They just acted as middle men.

The then John Mahama led government with its Power Minister Dr Kwabena Donkor defended the transaction.

Having won power, the New Patriotic Party government set up a committee to investigate the circumstances surrounding the agreement.

The Philip Addison led committee after investigations concluded the country had been shortchanged.

Government has been looking for information and for now has labeled as suspects the three ex- government officers whose houses have been searched.

Story by Ghana|Myjoyonline.com|Nathan Gadugah