According to officials on Monday, President John Mahama’s anti-corruption campaign continued with the arrest of a top Ghanaian security official over the weekend for allegedly embezzling millions of dollars from a cyber-security contract.
The former director general of Ghana’s National Signals Bureau (NSB), Kwabena Adu-Boahene, is charged with embezzling money from a $7 million contract intended to fortify the nation’s cyber-security infrastructure.
Mahama, who assumed power in January, has promised to recover public funds that were embezzled under former President Nana Akufo-Addo.
Restoring public confidence in government institutions and holding previous officials accountable for financial impropriety are the goals of the crackdowns, which include an investigation of former finance minister Ken Ofori-Atta, according to officials.
The Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Dominic Ayine, announced on Monday that Adu-Boahene had been arrested for allegedly embezzling money from a contract with the Israeli company RLC Holdings Limited for cyber-defence systems that was signed in January 2020.
The agreement was made to help Ghana fight digital espionage, data breaches, and cyberthreats. But according to the state’s Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) inspectors, the money was transferred to personal accounts connected to Adu-Boahene and his spouse, Angela Adjei-Boateng.
Ayine said that Adu-Boahene moved over 27 million Ghanaian cedis ($1.7 million) from the NSB’s accounts to a private one after the contract was signed.
“The sum was for the purchase of cyber-defence system software, according to official documents on the transfer. He moved the funds to his private business,” Ayine stated.
According to authorities, the couple subsequently purchased many houses in Ghana and elsewhere using more money that had been misappropriated.
Both are still in custody while the investigation is conducted to find further suspects.
The former finance minister, Ofori-Atta, is also being investigated by investigators for alleged financial irregularities related to the issuing of government bonds and the handling of public debt.
Furthermore, the government is investigating a payroll fraud case at Ghana’s National Service Secretariat, where it is believed that more than 81,000 “ghost names” were used to embezzle millions of dollars from public funds.
Ayine declared, “The era of impunity is over. We will ensure that all those responsible for the looting of public funds face the full force of the law.”
Prosecutions are anticipated to start in the upcoming months as the government promises to move the anti-graft drive along quickly.
The corruption probes coincide with the nation’s attempts to stabilise its economy and reassure foreign financial institutions and investors.
One of the main requirements for the financial assistance the administration has been negotiating with the International Monetary Fund is the implementation of governance reforms.
