Martin Amidu
The office of the Special Prosecutor has written to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration to offer Mr Samuel Adam Foster, also known as Mr Samuel Adam Mahama, the opportunity to voluntarily fly back home to Ghana on the evacuation flight for Ghanaian citizens stranded in the United Kingdom on 27 July 2020.
The Special Prosecutor’s letter states, among other reasons, that: “Samuel Adam Mahama’s elder brother of full blood who without doubt and the evidence available to this Office answers to the description of the elected Government Official 1 allegedly granted a denial interview to the Daily Graphic, which published same on 20th June 2020, fortunately, containing suspected admissions that he is the elected Government Official I referred to in the UK judgment.
“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”.
“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.”
The letter also argues that it is important for the case to be depoliticised, and the request to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to ask the High Commission in the UK to urgently facilitate the voluntary evacuation of Mr Samuel Mahama to Ghana, is in order for him 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.”
The Special Prosecutor, Mr Martin Amidu argues that until Mr Samuel Mahama answers in court for the suspected allegations discovered by the investigation against him as a Ghanaian citizen, the unwarranted politicisation “of this simple corruption crime by his family and supporters will continue.”
The letter to the Ministry concluded by stating 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 10th July 2020.”
Mr Amidu noted that the fight against the Airbus SE (Ghana) corruption is not a political matter and every patriotic Ghanaian who believes in the anti-corruption fight must support and encourage his office to impartially get to the root of the matter.
He also urged Mr Samuel Adam Mahama to accept the opportunity to voluntarily evacuate to Ghana as a patriotic citizen to vindicate his image and that of his family.
On July 10, Interpol issued an international red notice for Mr Samuel Mahama and three others over their alleged involvement in the Airbus bribery scandal.
Mr Samuel Mahama has been accused of accepting a bribe to influence a public officer and acting in collaboration with a public officer for the public officer’s private gain.
Also declared wanted are Sarah Furneaux, Sarah Leanne Davis, and Philip Sean Middlemiss.
According to Interpol, the four individuals are “fugitives wanted for prosecution” for their roles in accepting and paying €3,909,756 as a bribe on behalf of AIRBUS SE, to some key Ghanaian public officials from 2009 to 2015.