Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) has began investigations into the allegation of misappropriation of funds by two Municipal Chief Executives (MCEs), Mr. Sam Attukwei Quaye and Mr. Ibrahim Baidoo of Ga West and Ashaiman Municipal Assemblies respectively, in the Greater Accra region, Today can confirm.
The move by CHRAJ, Today understands, follows separate publications by the paper on the conduct of the two MCEs.
In the case of Mr. Baidoo, Today on Friday, February 12, 2016 reported that residents of Ashaiman have accused the MCE of using the Assembly’s funds to rent a fully-furnished detached house located between Ashaiman Newtown and Tema Community 22.
The residents went on to allege in the said publication that Mr. Baidoo paid huge US dollars as rent for the facility which is about 150 metres away from the Assembly’s neglected project site.
For Mr. Quaye, Today on Friday, April 8, 2016 reported that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) youth in Trobu-Amasaman constituency in the Ga West Municipality issued a strong-worded petition to President John Dramani Mahama, alleging that Mr. Quaye on January 28, 2015 sold 14.04 acres of the Assembly’s land for only 300,000 Ghana Cedis without the knowledge and approval of the Assembly.
They stressed that “the people of Ga West wanted to know how a learned person could give such a huge land for such an amount of money.”
They further accused the MEC of taking bribe from Unique Development Company Limited and out of that bribery money built a party office for the Amasaman branch of the NDC.
According to the petitioners, the MCE even challenged them to find out how the NDC built its headquarters, implying the party headquarters was also built through” kick-backs.”
“If the Hon. MCE sold a plot of land in a prime area in Amasaman for GHc5,000 when the current price of a plot of land in the same area is sold over Ghc100,000, then this act of corruption must be checked ,” they charged.
Earlier in an interview with Today, a staff member of CHRAJ who is part of the investigative team, speaking on condition of anonymity, noted that Article 218 of 1992 Constitution, section 7 (1) of CHRAJ Act 1993 (Act 456) empowers the Commission to investigate instances of alleged or suspected corruption and misappropriation of public money by public officials and take appropriate steps including reporting to the Attorney General’s Department and the Auditor-General for an investigation to commence.
The officer told this reporter that CHRAJ is investigating the Ga West MCE to find out whether he took bribe from Unique Development Limited to build an NDC office at Amasaman constituency including the sale of the Assembly’s land.
On Mr. Baidoo, the investigator indicated that CHRAJ would investigate whether the MCE spent the Assembly’s Internal Generated Fund (IGF) to rent an apartment for himself and some of the management members.
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