Accra: Former Member of Parliament for Adansi Asokwa, Kobina Tahir Hammond, has vehemently denied allegations that he and members of the Energy Committee were bribed in the AKSA Energy deal back in 2015. The allegations surfaced following a statement by the United States State Department, which announced the conviction of Asante Berko, former Managing Director of the Tema Oil Refinery, for bribing government officials in Ghana.
According to Ghana Web, the US State Department's statement implicated members of the Energy Committee in accepting a $46,000 bribe to facilitate the AKSA Energy deal. KT Hammond, who chaired the Energy Committee at the time, dismissed the claims as unfounded, questioning the logic of such a small amount being used to influence the committee. "For the sake of all that is making the rounds, people are taking one million..., and then the suggestion is that KT Hammond, and his [committee] we took about $500 each," he remarked incredulously.
In an interview with Citi News, Hammond emphasized that the committee's duty was to scrutinize and approve deals in the interest of the country, not to engage in corrupt practices. He further explained that any approved deals would still require ratification by the larger parliamentary body, making the alleged bribery scheme illogical. "Our mandated duty is to scrutinize documents and make sure that... think about it, we are only 28," he stated, adding that the plenary consists of over 270 members.
The documents, as reported by Ghana Web, detailed the flow of funds in the $1 million AKSA power bribery scandal. Payments were allegedly made to various officials, including those linked to the Ministry of Power, the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission, and Parliament. One significant wire transfer of $500,000 was made from Turkey to Ghana in April 2015, followed by another $1.5 million transfer in May 2015.
A breakdown of the alleged bribe payments included $20,000 for the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission, funds for the Ministry of Power staff, and allocations for the 'Power Team' and GridCo engineers. Parliament was purportedly set to receive $30,000, while Asante Berko was noted to have a personal cut of $35,000.
The evidence presented in the US prosecution of Berko, who was convicted by a federal jury in Brooklyn, New York, included emails and documents outlining the disbursement of the bribes. However, KT Hammond maintained his stance, refuting any involvement or awareness of such payments within the Energy Committee.