Former Chief Executive of the Ghana COCOBOD, Dr. Stephen Kwabena Opuni has been sued at the Accra High Court for allegedly for causing financial loss to the state.
The State has leveled a total of 27 charges against Dr. Opuni along with Businessman cum Chief Executive Officer of Zeera Group of Companies, Alhaji Seidu Agongo and Agricult Ghana Ltd.
A copy of the writ sited by Peacefmonline shows that the trio are charged with wilfully causing financial loss to the State, defrauding by false pretence, contravention of the Public Procurement Act, corruption of public officer, money laundering among other various offences.
Per the Particulars of Offence regarding Count One, Mr Opuni, between January 2014 and November 2014, abetted Seidu Agongo and Agricult Ghana Ltd to defraud COCOBOD of the sum of GHC 43,120,000.
According to the suit, Mr. Agongo and Agricult Limited falsely obtained the amount between 2013 and November 2014 by representing COCOBOD to supply Lithovit Follar Fertilizer from Germany for application by farmers on cocoa for the 2013/2014 cocoa season.
The suit said ”Mr. Stephen Kwabena Opuni between November 2014 and November 2015 in Accra in the Greater Accra Region, abeted Seidu Agongo and Agricult Ghana Limited to defraud Ghana COCOBOD of the sum of Ghc 75, 289, 314.72.”
“Stephen Kwabena Opuni on the 10th of October 2014 in Accra, agreed to permit your conduct as the Chief Executive Officer of COCOBOD to be influenced with an amount of Twenty Five Thousand Ghana Cedis (Ghc25,000) from Seidu Agongo”.
The state in the suit believes that the CEO of COCOBOD "failed to satisfy the prescribed conditions for single-sourced procurement". The state also concluded that Seidu Agongo and Agricult "sold misbranded fertilizer contrary to section 114(1(b) of the Plants and Fertilizer Act, 2010 (Act 803)".
Seidu Agongo is also accused of selling "adulterated fertilizer" contrary to section 114(1)(c) of the Plants and Fertilizer Act, 2010 (Act 803).
In fact, the state accuses Seidu Agongo of "manufacturing the fertilizer in commercial quantities without registration", contrary to the law.
It could be recalled that the Economic and Organised Crimes Office (EOCO) froze the assets of the COCOBOD CEO as part of its investigations into an alleged scandal involving Dr. Opuni.
He was accused of exploiting and mismanaging the cocoa sector and was relieved of his post on January 12, 2017.
The Republic vrs Dr. Kwabena Opuni's case is set for hearing on Friday, March 23, 2018.
Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana
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Special prosecutor hit the ground running, by end of this year about 27 politicians will be jail in a court of competent juridiction...
Am not a lawyer but if these are the highlights then am sorry. nonthing serious in this suit
I support NPP for total house cleaning but however they shouldn't forget to do it alongside their numerous promises because. This is because the Holier than thou His Excellency prophet bishop Jerry Rawlings did same but he ended up enriching himself with properties including very corrupt Abacha $5,000,000.00 dollars sorry 2million as he said. Thank you Nana Addo
Massa ; whether you like Opuni and adongo or not this is not an NDC/NNP political matter ; this is a matter of delibrate planned steeling master minded by Jon Mahama and his criminal bandits ; the worse part is that Lordina Mahama is deeply involved and was awared some of these fake contracts ; this trial is going to expose JON Mahama and Lordina Mahama BIG TIME !!!!!; this is the opportunity to expose Jon Mahama and his steelers who planned and executed a master plan to loot and pluge Ghana into huge debts ; OPuni should be jailed for a long time ; this has nothing to do with NDC/NPP politics it is plain stilling and individuals should be jailed with hard labour .
@Yaw, that would have happened if u were the judge. but thank God you dont have the brain for that position. i am very surprised how u ple follow these politicians soo blindly. u need to wake up because they are the ple creating the mess in our country. we dont need any npp/ndc in this. let whoever commits a crime against the state face the law. u can sue any person in this govt if you have a case and stop that f00l1shn3ss
The fuuuuuuuuuls will always defend opuni and NDC.fire burn u all.
Please read charge pdf properly, 43,120......is one of the counts, there are 27 in all. It's clear he alone did not do this but if I am him, I will do a plea bargain and give up the big fishes behind, we all know them...they are still talking, and they want to come back to power. funny world
For Opuni, his own party people declared him as the most corrupt government official way back. He was the most powerful after Ibrahim Mahama. No NDC/NPP in this please. I was disappointed NDC couldn't jail even one NPP government official in their 8yrs. It sets a bad precedence for "scratch my back and I scratch your back". we must break that cycle. We must make political appointment unattractive to ***barred word***. I expect NDC to also jail any NPP person who corrupt himself if they should ever come back to power. I don't wish for their coming back anyway. If NPP/NDC take such people on seriously for two political cycles, I bet anyone that the fear of God will be in corrupt politicians.
EFO, BE A GOOD CITIZEN AND GO TO COURT OR ***barred word*** YOUR MOUTH WITH EVIL ILL. THOSE WITH EVIDENCE ARE IN COURT IF YOU FEEL SAME GO TO COURT AND STOP THIS CHEAP PROPAGANDA.
The NPP is so desperate to shed off the ***barred word*** corruption tag they are wearing so gorgeously barely a year into their administration!! Opuni will come out looking more patriotic than ever!!!