Lawyer for the NDC, Edudzi Tamakloe says the government is seeking to divert attention from important issues in the country with an arrest warrant issued for Samuel Adam Mahama.
According to him, Martin Amidu is also trying to remain relevant with an arrest warrant for Samuel Adam Mahama for his alleged role in Airbus bribery scandal after he has been rendered worthless.
Edudzi Tamakloe said the arrest warrant is just a PR gimmick by the government.
“At a glance one will not that this is nothing but a typical government Public Relation gimmick in a sense that when this Airbus issue came up with the publication of deferred prosecution agreement and the approved judgement government of Ghana being excited with the sensational details through the Special Prosecutor and you will recall the President asking the SP to proceed and investigate the matter. Subsequently, our Daily Graphic on the front page has Martin Amidu writing and inviting some individuals.”
He explained that the said notice of arrest and the red flag will not be found on the website of Interpol.
But rather it was the Special Prosecutor who went to the Circuit Court to secure the warrant which he described as dubious and presented it to the office of Interpol in Ghana.
“What is its significance? it is that… purported to be the arrest warrant from Interpol when you visit the site of the Interpol and look for the name Samuel Mahama you will notice that it is not on the website. This appears to be looking at the details Martin Amidu going before the Circuit court ex parte motion then a Circuit court judge giving a warrant for arrest, it is this warrant of arrest by the court that has been taken to the Interpol office in Ghana and given this dubious publicity as though it is something that we should be celebrating.”
“If you look at the details the fallacious nature of the detail beyond that you will notice that this is much I do about nothing, Mr Martin Amidu wrote to the… Fraud office of the UK it has been more than four months now the Serious Fraud Office of the UK had basically ignored him now to prove his usefulness he has decided to go to the Circuit court in Ghana in May to now procure this warrant of arrest, you will see that this is an SP who is trying very hard to remain relevant in the midst of the confusion that we have seen and that is why I want to treat this particular arrest warrant with the contempt that it deserves.”
Edudzi Tamakloe further stated that the UK would have been the first to arrest Samuel Adam Mahama because that was where the alleged bribery occurred and not Martin Amidu.
Arrest notice
The International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol) has issued an arrest warrant for Samuel Adam Fosters aka Samuel Adam Mahama over his role in the Airbus bribery scandal.
He is being charged for accepting a bribe to influence a public officer and acting in collaboration with a public officer for the public officers private gain.
According to Interpol, for the offence he is liable to a term of imprisonment not exceeding of 25 years.
The arrest warrant which was issued on July 10, said once Mr Adam Mahama is traced, “assurances are given that extradition will be sought upon arrest of the person, in conformity with national laws and/or the applicable bilateral and multilateral treaties.”
Ghana is one of five countries in which the European aviation giant, Airbus, paid or attempted to pay millions of dollars in bribes in exchange for contracts, leading a court in Britain to slap a fine of £3 billion on the company.
In court documents and hearings, Airbus admitted five counts of failing to prevent bribery, using a network of secret agents to pay large-scale backhanders to officials in foreign countries, including Ghana, to land high-value contracts.
