Another New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament has been named as a subject of an Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) investigation linked to transactions involving SIC Life Savings and Loans.
The development emerged after an Accra High Court granted EOCO a warrant to arrest Manhyia South MP Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah and authorised the agency to search for and seize documents relevant to its investigation.
Deputy Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Justice Srem-Sai disclosed that another MP on the Minority side was also a subject of the investigation involving SIC Life Savings and Loans. The identity of the second legislator was not disclosed in the latest public statements reviewed.
The investigation centres on financial transactions involving SIC Life Savings and Loans, a company that had engaged the law firm Sarkodie Baffour Awuah & Partners in connection with the recovery of funds invested with the defunct Equity Savings and Loans.
Baffour Awuah, who was a senior partner at the law firm, has disputed EOCO’s account of events. His lawyers have maintained that the February correspondence from EOCO was addressed to him in his professional capacity as senior partner and concerned the firm’s client, SIC Life Savings and Loans.
According to the lawyers, after Baffour Awuah became an MP, he referred the matter to the Clerk to Parliament for advice. They further stated that a representative of the law firm subsequently cooperated with EOCO and attended three interrogation sessions on March 4, March 18 and April 30. A formal written statement was also submitted to the agency.
EOCO, however, has maintained that Baffour Awuah was invited twice in February to assist with its investigation but did not honour the invitations. The agency said the failed invitations led it to take further lawful steps to secure his attendance.
The dispute escalated on September 23 when EOCO officers attempted to arrest the MP at the Accra High Court. EOCO later said officers abandoned the operation after assessing that continuing could create a public-safety risk.
The High Court has now authorised EOCO to arrest Baffour Awuah after the agency told the court that reasonable efforts to secure his voluntary attendance had been exhausted. EOCO also expressed concern that documents relevant to the investigation could be concealed, altered or destroyed.
Justice Srem-Sai said the allegations being investigated include financial loss, dissipation of public funds and money laundering. These remain allegations under investigation and have not been established as wrongdoing by either legislator.
Baffour Awuah has previously explained that the funds at the centre of the matter were initially about GH¢3.5 million and later increased to approximately GH¢14 million with accrued interest before a negotiated settlement was reached.
The naming of another MP adds a new dimension to the ongoing EOCO investigation, while the agency continues to examine the transactions and the roles of the individuals connected to them.
Source: Thepressradio.com
