Okudzeto Ablakwa To GRA; I Don’t Owe You Any Apology

The Member of Parliament for the North Tongu constituency, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has stated categorically that he does not owe any apology to the Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Rev. Dr. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah, for accusing him of fleeing the country while a contract he supervised is being .

In a post on social media, Ablakwa accused the President of Ghana, Akufo-Addo, of assisting the GRA boss to flee the country despite the ongoing auditing of the GRA and Strategic Mobilisation Limited (SML) revenue assurance contract.

Ablakwa demanded an explanation from the president over the absence of the boss.

However, GRA, in a statement, debunked the comment, saying its boss has not absconded but is on leave. GRA in the statement explained that Dr. Owusu-Amoah’s leave was approved almost a month ago, and he is expected back in the office on January 15.

GRA described Ablakwa’s comment as a misrepresentation of facts and malicious, and demanded an apology from him.

In response, Ablakwa stated that he does not owe the GRA any apology, as their response fails to discredit the findings of his unimpeachable parliamentary oversight.

“Let me assure the GRA that I do not owe them an apology, and they surely are not going to get one. The GRA response abysmally fails to discredit the findings of my unimpeachable parliamentary oversight.”

I have become aware of the GRA statement. Let me assure the GRA that I do not owe them an apology, and they surely are not going to get one.

The GRA response abysmally fails to discredit the findings of my unimpeachable parliamentary oversight.

Consistent with the revelations I published, the GRA has only confirmed that Ghana is the only country in the world where the President orders a crucial audit into a ginormous scandal and the head of the organisation under audit is concurrently allowed to proceed on leave and assisted to travel out of the country during the said audit — absolutely incredulous! Under another incorruptible President, this GRA boss would have been fired for daring to leave the jurisdiction during such a high profile national audit into the create, loot and share scheme he collaborated with Ken Ofori-Atta to perpetrate.

The GRA release further states that Rev. Dr. Ammishaddai Owusu-Ansah is on a 6-day leave and will resume work on January 15, 2024.

This does not add up. The GRA Commissioner-General left Ghana on January 3, 2024 — a few hours after the January 2, 2024 presidential directive of a KPMG audit. Leaving Ghana on the 3rd of January, 2024 and resuming work on the 15th of January, 2024 which instructively is the entire period of the promised 2-weeks audit cannot be described as a 6-day leave.

These bizarre developments and blatant official untruths are bound to happen when a corrupt government opts for deception and a grand cover-up instead of an honest, transparent and credible investigation into the US$100million SML scandal.

Nothing will stop us from pursuing our constitutional mandate of parliamentary oversight. Forward ever, backward never! For God and Country. Ghana First.