The Finance Minister-designate, Ken Ofori-Atta, believes that the then Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu, did the country and democracy a disservice by not including a response from the Finance Ministry in his report on the Agyapa royalties agreement.
“It is a disservice to our democracy for such a report to be put out in the public [domain] without us or myself as Minister of Finance having a chance to discuss it,” he said during his vetting on Thursday, March 25, 2021.
The various “conjectures [in the report] are anti-growth, and it does not help the kind of policy orientation and innovation that we need for this country to grow,” he claims.
Martin Amidu’s 64-page corruption risk analysis report from 2020 added to the problems with the Agyapa deal, which had already been raised by opposition parties and civil society groups.
Amidu, in his report, poked even more holes in the deal.
As a result, some stakeholders have called for the Finance Minister’s resignation or dismissal.
However, speaking before Parliament’s Appointments Committee on Thursday, Ofori-Atta claimed that his fundamental human rights, as well as the rights of all those involved in the deal’s implementation, had been violated.
He took advantage of the opportunity to defend the work done by his Ministry and the various institutions involved in the deal prior to Parliament’s approval.
“I don’t believe we broke any rules, and I believe the Attorney General will be able to provide you with a firm assessment.”
According to Ofori-Atta, the government has good intentions for the country, which is why the Agyapa deal was introduced to make more money from Ghana’s gold royalties in order to propel the country’s growth.
Source: ATLFMNEWSROOM
