Barring any hitch, Samuel Adam Foster, aka Samuel Adam Mahama, brother of former President John Dramani Mahama, will today touch down at the Kotoka International Airport in Accra to be interrogated by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) for his alleged involvement in the four million Euro Airbus bribery scandal.
DAILY GUIDE is reliably informed that through the efforts of the Special Prosecutor (SP), Martin Amidu, a ticket has been bought for Adam Mahama in London, United Kingdom (UK), where he resides.
According to sources, as of last Saturday the ticket had been delivered to his home in London and was expected to voluntarily join a flight from London today which is being arranged by government for stranded Ghanaians in the UK due to the Covid-19 restrictions worldwide.
‘Unveiling’ Mahama
Last Friday, the SP ‘unveiled’ former President Mahama as the Government Official 1 or Individual 1 that both the United Kingdom and United States investigators referred to in the Airbus SE scandal.
Mr. Amidu’s office has been pursuing the former President’s brother Mr. Foster, aka Samuel Adam Mahama, particularly described as Intermediary 5 in the investigations, and three other foreigners, who have been mentioned as individuals who collected or were paid around four million Euros in bribes on behalf of Ghanaian top officials for the supply of aircraft to the Ghana Armed Forces during Mr. Mahama’s tenure as Vice-President and later President.
Fresh Letter
He said in a fresh statement on Friday that he had written to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to give Adam Mahama the chance to voluntarily join an emergency flight for Ghanaians stranded in the UK to return to Ghana on Monday, July 27, to face prosecution over the Airbus bribery case.
The SP said he was being attacked by persons close to Mr. Mahama who he said were saying that he (Mr. Amidu) is tainting his (Mahama) image when, in fact, he said he wanted to pursue the case devoid of politicization.
Mr. Amidu’s letter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had the title: “The Special Prosecutor’s urgent request to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to facilitate the possibility of Samuel Adam Foster (Samuel Adam Mahama) voluntarily offering to be assisted to come to Ghana on the evacuation flight from London to Accra for Ghanaians on 27 July 2020.”
“This office has today written a letter with reference number OSP/SCR/2D/34/20 dated July 24, 2020 to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration to offer Samuel Adam Foster also known as Samuel Adam Mahama the opportunity to accept to voluntarily evacuate on the evacuation flight for Ghanaian citizens stranded in the United Kingdom to return to Ghana through a scheduled flight on July 27, 2020.”
Blood Brother
According to Mr. Amidu, “This office’s letter states, amongst other reasons for the letter to the said ministry, that Mr. Mahama’s elder brother of full blood, who without doubt and with the evidence available to this office, answers to the description of the elected Government Official I allegedly granted a denial interview to the Daily Graphic which published same on June 20, 2020, fortunately containing suspected admissions that he was the elected Government Official I referred to in the UK judgement.”
He said that “serving appointees of this government have been unable to obtain the voice recording of the interview to enable this office to confront the former President with his own admissions in the interview as answering to the description of the brother of Samuel Mahama as the Intermediary 5.”
Personal Attacks
Mr. Amidu said that, nonetheless, “this office and the person of the Special Prosecutor continue to be attacked as ‘a bitter old man’ settling scores with Samuel Adam Mahama and his accomplices who the Special Prosecutor does not know and has never met.”
No Politics
The SP said he explained in the letter to the ministry on the need that the case should not be politicized and must be treated purely as a criminal matter.
“The letter also argues that it is very important for the depoliticization of this case; therefore, for this office to request the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to ask the High Commission in the UK to urgently facilitate the voluntary evacuation of Samuel Adama Mahama to Ghana in order to assuage not only his own image but also that of his brother the former President, who accuses this office of tainting his image by the investigation of the suspected allegations.
“This is because until Samuel Mahama answers in court for the suspected allegations discovered by the investigation of this office against him as a Ghanaian citizen, the unwarranted politicization of this simple corruption crime by his family and supporters will continue,” he added.
Voluntary Acceptance
He said his letter concluded that “Samuel Adam Mahama must be given the opportunity to voluntarily accept to return to Ghana and put himself upon the Republic of Ghana to vindicate himself and save this country of the millions of foreign exchange from the public purse that must be expended to extradite him to Ghana from the UK or any other country in execution of the Interpol Red Notice issued against him as a fugitive wanted for prosecution as published on July 10, 2020.”
“The fight against the Airbus SE (Ghana) corruption, everybody agrees, is not a political matter. Consequently, every patriotic Ghanaian who believes in the anti-corruption fight must support and encourage this office to impartially get to the root of this allegation of corruption against the public purse and urge Samuel Adam Mahama to accept the opportunity to voluntarily evacuate to Ghana as a patriotic citizen of Ghana to vindicate his image and that of his family,” Mr. Amidu said.
Red Notice
Already, Mr. Amidu has defended the Red Notice from International Police Organization (Interpol) issued for the arrest of the former President’s brother and the four other foreigners, saying he built a good case to warrant the Interpol action.
He described the Airbus SE scandal where Ghanaian top officials through the fugitives collected or were paid around four million Euros in bribes for the supply of aircraft to the Ghana Armed Forces, as ‘gluttonous corruption’ and also described the lawyers of the NDC who were criticizing the attempt to arrest the fugitives as unethical and inexperienced.
The notices were issued after more than three months of the initial request on July 10, 2020 for the arrests of Samuel Mahama together with Sarah Furneaux, Sarah Leanne Davis and Philip Sean Middlemiss for their roles in the Airbus SE bribery scandal.
They stand accused of accepting bribe to influence a public officer and acting in collaboration with a public officer for the public officer’s private gain.
By Ernest Kofi Adu