Executive Director of Transparency International Ghana, Mary Addah, has called for a comprehensive investigation into all individuals linked to the Asante Berko bribery case, insisting that Ghana must uncover the full local network behind the alleged corruption.
She said Ghanaian authorities should not limit their response to developments in the United States but interrogate every person mentioned in connection with the case to establish their respective roles and determine whether Ghanaian laws were breached.
Mrs Addah argued that the case presents a critical test of Ghana’s commitment to fighting corruption and holding both public officials and private actors accountable, regardless of when the alleged misconduct occurred.
Her comments follow renewed attention on the case after former Goldman Sachs banker Asante Berko was convicted in the United States over a bribery scheme connected to a power project in Ghana.
Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Monday, August 10, Mrs Addah said cancelling contracts linked to alleged corruption was not enough and urged authorities to pursue the individuals involved.
“Apart from saying we are cancelling the contract, we must also be interrogating all the people who were mentioned,” she said.
She added that the case offered Ghana an opportunity to demonstrate that allegations of corruption from previous years could still be investigated and appropriately dealt with.
“I believe that as people who are willing and ready to fight corruption, this is a good opportunity to show that what happened in the past can be brought back today and be dealt with,” she said.
According to Mrs Addah, questioning all persons connected to the matter would enable investigators to establish the facts, identify possible wrongdoing and determine whether any public officials or private individuals violated Ghana’s laws or ethical standards.
She stressed that a credible investigation should examine both direct and indirect involvement in the transaction and establish whether decisions taken by officials served the public interest.
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The case has sparked fresh calls for a comprehensive investigation in Ghana, with the Attorney-General indicating that Ghanaian authorities would cooperate with their United States counterparts to examine the Ghanaian dimension of the matter.
Mrs Addah said such an investigation could help Ghana draw important lessons from the case, strengthen anti-corruption safeguards and demonstrate that individuals implicated in corruption would not escape scrutiny simply because the alleged conduct occurred years ago.
She maintained that pursuing the matter to its logical conclusion would send a strong signal about Ghana’s willingness to confront corruption and enforce accountability across both the public and private sectors.
