I smell Official Complicity in NAM 1 Case- MP for South Dayi
The Member of Parliament (MP) for South Dayi Constituency in the Volta Region, Hon Rockson-Nelson Kwami Etse Dafeamekpor has said he smells official complicity in the state case against Ghanaian business tycoon Nana Appiah Mensah popularly known as NAM1.
According to him, the Claims by the Executive Director of Economic and Organised Crime Office (ECOCO), COP Maame Tiwa Addo-Danquah, that there are no clear relevant laws to prosecute the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Menzgold investment smacks of official complicity in the part of the state.
The lawmaker wondered if the comment by the ECOCO Boss implied that NAM1 Menzgold had been in legal business after all the brouhaha.
“What this EOCO Boss is saying must be taken seriously. I smell official complicity in this matter. Lack of Applicable Laws means we have no laws in Ghana under which to charge NAM1 in court. Really? So does it mean NAM1 was engaged in lawful business?” Hon Dafeamekpor quizzed on his Twitter handle.
Speaking at a forum recently, COP Maame Tiwaa Addo Danquah, expressed concerns about the prosecution of NAM1, noting that the state is facing difficulty in finding evidence to prosecute him due to a lack of evidence and appropriate legal provisions.
“An example is the Menzgold case. Which law, which Act did he break? And it is becoming difficult to even prosecute that case because no law will define the offence,” she said.
Similarly, the Deputy Minister for Finance, John Ampontuah Kumah, has said that state prosecutors in charge of the case against the Menzgold CEO hold a view contrary to that of the EOCO boss.
The Deputy Minister claimed the state remains bent on pursuing its case against the Chief Executive Officer of the defunct investment firm.
He stressed that the Attorney General’s office has not expressed any difficulty proceeding with the prosecution of NAM 1 contrary to Maame Tiwaa’s statement.
“First of all, let me just put it out there that the Attorney General has not come out with any statement on the prosecution status of Menzgold, and a comment by the Executive Director of EOCO does not represent the position of the prosecutors in this matter. So we need to put that clear,” he said.
He added that the government is resolved to ensure that the case against NAM 1 is pursued to its conclusion.
NAM 1
“As far as the government is concerned, we think that the matter is in court. We have heard the difficult painful stories of customers and victims of Menzgold, but sometimes, if you can recall, when the government decided to intervene in this illegality, the posture of the same customers and victims and how even fought against the government not interfering and leave NAM 1 alone and they trusted that he’ll deliver and come and pay them.
“So some of these things we have gone a full haul to get to where we are, but as far as the government is concerned, the prosecution is going on,” he said.
NAM 1 had been charged before the law court with 14 counts of money laundering, stealing, taking deposits without authority, defrauding by pretenses, abetment of crime, sale of minerals without a license, and carrying on a deposit without license amongst others.
Source: expressnewsghana.com
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