Former Prime Minister placed on red notice list

Ghana’s former Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, has been placed on Interpol’s red notice list after allegedly using public office for personal gain, reports Al Jazeera. Ofori-Atta, whose location remains unclear as he reportedly seeks medical treatment, is being investigated over a string of high-profile contracts relating to petroleum revenues, electricity supply and ambulance procurement. He is also under investigation over a controversial national cathedral project that swallowed tens of millions of dollars in public money yet remains little more than a hole in the ground. The red notice – a request to police worldwide to detain a suspect pending extradition – was issued four days after Ghana’s Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) re-declared the 65-year-old a wanted person after he failed to appear for a scheduled interrogation. The OSP insists Ofori-Atta must appear in person, rejecting requests from his legal team for a virtual session on medical grounds. The prosecutor’s notice, published by the state-run Ghana News Agency today, stated a number of possible locations, including the US, the UK, SA, Guyana, Hong Kong and the Cayman Islands. ‘We will not countenance this conduct, not in this case,’ Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng said. Frank Davies, a member of Ofori-Atta’s legal team, told AFP medical records had been submitted ‘in good faith’, but that ‘the office has chosen to ignore them’. The new administration of President John Mahama has been on the heels of former government appointees to account for their tenure in office.

Full Al Jazeera report