Former New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearer aspirant, Dr Arthur Kennedy, has called on President John Dramani Mahama to intensify and depoliticise Ghana’s anti-corruption campaign, warning that selective enforcement could undermine public confidence.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s Big Issue on Saturday, January 17, Dr Kennedy argued that although recent efforts signal renewed commitment, the pace of prosecutions remains slow and overly focused on retrospective cases rather than prevention.
“I expect the process to be swift. The anti-corruption fight is too slow,” he said, stressing that Ghana must place greater emphasis on preventive measures while ensuring that accountability is applied fairly across the political divide.
Dr Kennedy cautioned that perceived partisanship, particularly the limited prosecution of officials aligned with the National Democratic Congress (NDC), risks weakening the credibility of the anti-corruption agenda. He urged the President to elevate and speed up the process while keeping it strictly non-partisan.
His comments come as former Chief Executive Officer of the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC), Sedina Tamakloe-Attionu, is scheduled to appear before a judge in the United States on January 21 to determine whether she will be extradited to Ghana.
Ghana’s Ambassador to the United States, Victor Smith, disclosed the development in an interview on Citi Eyewitness News on Friday, January 16, noting that U.S. Marshals have so far restricted Ghanaian government and embassy officials from visiting Madam Tamakloe-Attionu, though the reasons remain unclear.
Madam Tamakloe-Attionu was sentenced in absentia in April 2024 to 10 years’ imprisonment with hard labour by an Accra High Court after being convicted on 78 counts, including causing financial loss to the state, stealing, conspiracy to steal, money laundering, and breaches of the Public Procurement Act.
The offences, committed between 2013 and 2016, involved the misappropriation of MASLOC funds. Her co-accused, former MASLOC Chief Operating Officer Daniel Axim, was convicted and sentenced to five years’ imprisonment with hard labour.
The trial, which began in 2019, revealed the diversion of public funds, including monies meant for a sensitisation exercise and support for victims of the Kantamanto fire disaster, as well as inflated procurement costs for vehicles and mobile phones.
Dr Kennedy said cases such as the MASLOC prosecution underscore the need for an anti-corruption framework that is firm, swift, and impartial, urging President Mahama to ensure that justice is pursued consistently, regardless of political affiliation.
