CID Grills 3 NDC MPs Over $510m AMERI Deal

Three former ministers in the previous Mahama administration, whose homes were raided by operatives of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service over the ongoing AMERI $510 million probe, yesterday reported themselves to the police.

The former ministers, who are all Members of Parliament (MPs), reported themselves upon request by the CID to assist in investigations into the AMERI power deal brokered by the previous Mahama administration.

They are Dr Kwabena Donkor, MP for Pru East in the Brong-Ahafo Region and former Minister for Power; John Abdulai Jinapor, MP for Yapei Kusawgu in the Northern Region  and former Deputy Minister for Power and Dr Dominic Ayine,  former Deputy Attorney General who is the MP for Bolgatanga East in the Upper East Region.

Mr Kwabena Donkor was the first to report at the CID headquarters at about 9:30 am.

He was seen moving to the office of the Deputy Director General of the CID, ACP Maame Yaa Tiwaa Addo Danquah, after which three investigators also followed to the same office.

After spending close to 15 minutes with the deputy CID boss, Dr Donkor, according to information gleaned by DAILY GUIDE, was given a form to write his statement to the police on a later date.

At about 11:00 am, Dr Dominic Ayine also reported himself and went through the same procedure after which he was also given a form to present his statement.

The last to arrive was Mr John Jinapor at about 1:30 pm.

Speaker Notified
Information gathered by DAILY GUIDE at the CID headquarters indicated that the Speaker of Parliament, Professor Aaron Mike Oquaye, was duly notified before the operatives raided the various residences of the three NDC MPs.

Sources at the CID headquarters indicated that official letters were sent to him, as well as the minority and the majority leaders two weeks ago before the search team, with warrant from the court, stormed the homes of the MPs.

Professor Oquaye on Friday gave an assurance on the floor of parliament that he would invite the appropriate security officials to discuss matters relating to the dawn raids of the homes of the three members of the house.

This was after Muntaka Mubarak, minority chief whip, had called on him to restrain the security personnel from raiding the homes of the MPs on the minority side, who are linked to the AMERI power deal.

Police sources, however, indicated that the security agents followed due process before embarking on the search.

Apart from the three MPs, Francis Dzata, Technical Advisor to the Power Ministry, also had his residence searched by warrant-holding officers a week ago.

Dr Donkor had his laptops and pen drives seized by the officers when they went to his residence at the Spintex Road, while Francis Dzata also had his laptops seized.

However, Mr Jinapor only had his mobile phone (an iPhone) seized by the security operatives when the search was conducted in his house at Tema Community 12 last Friday.

Checks at the CID headquarters indicated that the seized items were not given to them when they reported at the headquarters.

The Mahama administration, in the heat of the dumsor (erratic power supply) in February 2015, entered into a $510 million deal with AMERI for the supply of power plants to mitigate the power crisis.

But media reports indicated that the cost of the project was outrageously high, thus compelling the Akufo-Addo government to set up a committee to look into the contract.

The committee, led by a private legal practitioner, Phillip Addison, disclosed in its report that it had found technical and financial lapses in the contract and called for its abrogation.

On the financial side, the committee found out that although AMERI secured the deal, the developer that built and financed the plant charged $360 million, yet AMERI forwarded a bill of $510 million in the agreement.

By Linda Tenyah –Ayettey
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