A security analyst Mustapha Gbande is cautioning President Akufo-Addo against taking hasty decisions against persons indicted in the latest galamsey expose by Tiger Eye PI.
The investigative piece christened ‘galamsey fraud’ uncovered massive scale of fraud perpetrated by some members of the Inter-Ministerial Committee against Illegal Mining (IMCIM).
The secret filming captured Presidential staffer and Secretary to the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining, Mr. Charles Cromwell Bissue taking cash amounting to GH¢35,000 in three meetings through one Andy Owusu who is aide to Ashanti Regional Chairman of the governing NPP Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, to circumvent the process to renew the mining license for ORR Resources Enterprise.
Mr. Bissue has since stepped aside from the Committee.
Details from the investigative piece spearheaded by ace investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas, however, point to a coordinated attempt by key members of the committee to derail the government and President Akufo-Addo’s efforts to fight the illegal mining menace.
Since the documentary aired on Wednesday February 27 there have been demands for persons indicted to be punished.
Government has however requested for the raw footages from the Tiger Eye PI for investigations before any action is taken.
But speaking on the Weekly Review on Morning Starr with Francis Abban, Mr. Gbande argued the method deployed by Anas Aremeyaw Anas and his Tiger Eye PI team is “unlawful for that matter the president should be cautious in how he acts on such criminally procured materials from Anas.”
According to him “past presidents have acted hastily and very wrong in law” by acting on works of Anas without any determination of guilt against the cited from the law courts.
“Mind you every investigative piece has to be subjected to prosecution and prosecution is done by the state. How then you go and investigate somebody, capture him on video which I call entrapment which is illegal and a criminal conduct. Go and show it to the public even before the person is convicted. What Anas is doing, what method is he using. I’ve heard a young man (in the video) say that I’ll fast track everything for you. For what? Is it Galamsey? Anas’ work, how many people have been convicted so far? The judges were only asked to step aside, who has so far been convicted? It is wrong for us to crucify somebody who has not been convicted before a court of competent jurisdiction.”
He urged the public not to jump to hasty conclusions in pronouncing persons caught in the video guilty.
“So why should we go ahead and punish people who are caught on tape through an illegal means or an illegal investigation? Every accused is innocent until proven guilty. Why should we punish him when we are still going to find out the authenticity of what Anas has done.”
Asked why the same principle did not apply in the case of former GFA President Kwasi Nyantakyi after the Number 12 football expose’ by the same Anas and his team, Mr. Gbande said President Akufo-Addo erred in causing the arrest of Kawsi Nyantakyi.
“The President acted in a way that has put him in a fix today because it is not for the President to order for the arrest of individuals.”
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM/Ibrahim Alhassan
