Dr Stephen Opuni, a former Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) and any other persons suspected to have caused financial loss to the state, should be granted amnesty and made to refund the monies they allegedly acquired fraudulent, to be used for developmental projects, Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyapong has said.
Mr Agyapong, who has been advocating the arrest of Dr Opuni for alleged corrupt practices, has, in a U-turn disclosed that he is not happy with his arrest.
“I’m not happy that he’s [Dr Opuni] going to court,” Mr Agyapong stated.
“In my opinion, they should have given amnesty to everybody they suspect has caused financial loss to the state to refund some of the money which we can use for development. If you jail the person for even 25 years as they are saying, when he comes back from jail, he’s still rich and you haven’t done anything. So, for me, if they were first granted amnesty and then if you are stubborn and refuse to refund the money or part of it, then you can be jailed,” the lawmaker said on Ekosii Sen, a current affairs programme on Accra-based Asempa FM on Tuesday, 27 March 2018.
Dr Opuni, businessman Seidu Agongo and AgriCult Ghana Company Limited, are facing 27 charges of willfully causing financial loss of GHS217million to the state, through three separate fertiliser supply contracts between 2014 and 2016.
The contracts were GHS43.1million (2013/2014 cocoa farming season), GHS75.3million (2014/2015 cocoa farming season) and GHS98.9million (2015/2016 cocoa farming season) totalling GHS217million through sole-sourcing, the state claimed, adding that procurement procedures for sole-sourcing were not followed.
According to the charges, the consignments of Lithovit Foliar were produced locally, contrary to an agreement between COCOBOD and AgriCult Ghana Company Limited that it be sourced from Germany.
Also, the Attorney General claims the fertilisers were manufactured without registration, thereby, flouting the Plants and Fertiliser Act 2010.
The two men have pleaded not guilty to the charges levelled against them. They will reappear at the Accra High court on 11 April 2018 to continue the case.
Source: classfmonline.com
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we will grant him alm next year..
OH MINE GOD !!!!!: KEN HAS GONE TO THE DOGS OR HAS BEEN GIVEN "NOKOFIO" BECAUSE THIS IS TYPICAL OF ALL POLITICIANS INCLUDING KEN THEY SAY SOMETHING TODAY TO FULL THE PEOPLE AND GO ROUND AND TAKE CASH AND SAY SOMETHING ELSE -COME; ON KEN !!!!!!:THEY ALL THE SAME BIG CROOKS : HOW CAN SUCH A THIFF BE GRANTED AMNESTY ?BESIDES IS KEN NOT AWARE THAT YOU CAN STILL GO TO JAIL AND ALL YOU ASSETS SEIZED AND REQUESTED TO REFUND THE MIONIES BACK BY THE COURTS : COME KEN DON'T BE AN IDIOTIC FULL ALTHOUGH WE AL KNOW YOU THE SO CALLED RICH MAN BUT YOU DON FEED EVERYBODY IN GHANA !!!!!!
you cannot be trusted as a good citizen. SANSANII. Your interest is money, money, money and bragging. Deceiverrr. You think you fooling us. You ***barred word*** yourself. You steal today and wait for your jail next time. You think we should allow you guys to steal the nation's money and be granting you amnesty. you better watch !!
no way Mr Ken! you are trying to gather sympathy for your fellow politician...! why dont you advocate for the release of those who have stolen mobile phones, chicken and goats to bring back the chicken or goat they have stolen and be freed?? ***barred word***
How can a person who pleaded not guilty be granted amnesty?....
The money must be refunded with penalty.
is ken agyapong out of his mind or he's taken some hard drugsss???? is that how democracy works??? so you politicians steallll money and protect each other. or ken has taken bribe from opuni and the headless insaneeee ndc???? ken should not speak of amnesty again else we will campaign strongly against him...rubb11shhhhh
Nana Addo please give ear to what Ali is saying.thats the right thing to do Let make sure we collect every pin they've robbed the country of.
KEN IS ONLY MAKING A SUGUESTION. OF COURSE WE NEED THE MONEY BUT YET STILL....
What's Ken saying... Is that how it works when he was leaving in United States? Hmmm Ghana. Thank God the President I believe is a man of action and justice. Very disappointed in Ken's comment.