Airbus report: I commend SP’s boldness; though Akufo-Addo was the petitioner – Prof. Gyampo

Political Science lecturer at the University of Ghana, Prof. Ransford Gyampo, has disclosed that although he is not a fan of Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng, he commends the boldness Agyebeng showcased in the Airbus scandal investigation.

Touching on the performance of some government appointees, the lecturer argued that most of their actions were aimed at satisfying the President.

In a social media post, Prof. Gyampo said “I am not a fan of our current SP but I commend his boldness & strong-willed persona in coming out with his findings on the Airbus Scandal, particularly when the President himself asked for the investigations”.

He added that, “Not all appointees can be this bold”.

This follows the OSP investigative report on the Airbus scandal, which indicated that the supposed “Government Official 1” (John Mahama) and “Intermediary 5” (Samuel Mahama) did no wrong and were not guilty of receiving bribes in the aforementioned scandal.

Earlier reports showed that between 2009 and 2015 “a number of Airbus employees made or promised success-based commission payments of approximately €5 million to Intermediary 5”, who is said to be “a close relative of a high ranking elected Ghanaian government official (Government Official 1)”.

The aerospace manufacturing company, Airbus, later entered into a plea bargain for paying bribes to top government officials to facilitate the securing of contracts in several countries, including Ghana..

However, after investigations, the United Kingdom Crown Court at Southwark passed its judgment on the Airbus scandal, revealing that the supposed ‘Government Official 1’ and ‘Intermediary 5’ were not guilty of any wrongdoing in the transaction. On August 8, 2024, the Special Prosecutor reconfirmed the verdict.