Member of Parliament for Kumbungu, Hamza Adam, has stated that Ghana’s recent resort to a loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) could have been avoided should the government have had access to the huge sums of alleged stolen money - US$1 million, €300,000, and 350,000 Ghana cedis from the home of Cecilia Abena Dapaah, the Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources.
According to him, the said amount is enough to sustain the struggling economy rather than the country seeking financial assistance from the international community.
"We all know it is illegal to keep such monies because if you look at the quantum of money that is alleged to be found in her residence, if we got such an amount of money, we didn't need to go to the IMF,” he said.
Speaking in a media briefing after a Parliamentary sitting on July 21, 2023, he stressed the need to investigate all ministers currently serving the country. "That is also a wake-up call, which means we have to go down and investigate all ministers serving the country at the moment.”
He added "I think it is important that the minister, as a matter of urgency, relinquish her position as a minister because her continued stay may interfere with the prosecution processes. We demand that the minister clears the way by doing the ultimate thing, or the president must compel her to resign.”
According to an official charge sheet from an Accra Circuit Court, the brazen thefts occurred at the couple's residence in Abelemkpe, a suburb of Accra, over a three-month period from July to October 2022. The accused, identified as Patience and Sarah, are facing serious charges, including conspiracy to commit a crime and multiple counts of stealing involving staggering amounts of money.
Not only were monetary assets stolen, but the accused also allegedly made off with personal belongings of Madam Cecilia Abena Dapaah, such as valuable clothes, handbags, perfumes, and jewelry. The stolen items amounted to a shocking value of GH¢95,000 and US$95,000.
Further accusations involved Patience acting alone in the theft of cultural treasures, including six pieces of Kente cloth worth GH¢90,000 and six sets of men's suits valued at US$3,000, which belonged to the minister's husband.
The court has also charged three additional individuals in connection with the thefts, revealing the complexity of the case.
AM/SARA
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Cecilia Dapaah, former Sanitation and Water Resources Minister