The Government of Ghana is working tirelessly to bring former Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC) CEO, Sedina Tamakloe Attionu, back to the country to serve her 10-year prison sentence.
The Deputy Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Alfred Tuah-Yeboah, confirmed that Attionu is currently residing in the United States and that the government is collaborating with US authorities to facilitate her extradition.
The story began in 2017 when investigators probed into MASLOC’s funds usage under Attionu’s leadership.
They discovered that she had embezzled GH¢3.19 million and caused the state to lose GH¢1.97 million.
Additionally, she made unauthorized commitments that cost the government GH¢61.74 million.
In January 2019, Attionu and former MASLOC Operations Manager, Daniel Axim, were charged with 78 counts of stealing, money laundering, and causing financial loss to the state.
Axim received a five-year prison sentence for his role in the scandal.
The Accra High Court sentenced Attionu to 10 years in prison on April 16, 2024 in absentia.
She had left the country on medical leave, prompting the government to seek extradition.
“We are filing all the necessary documentation, and if everything goes through, she will definitely come back to Ghana to begin her sentence,” Tuah-Yeboah assured.
The deputy minister said Sedina had been shuttling between the US and UK but now a tap has been put on her not to travel out of the US until her extradition is completed.
The government’s pursuit of Attionu’s extradition demonstrates its commitment to holding public officials accountable for their actions.
-BY Daniel Bampoe