Kennedy Agyapong, the Member of Parliament for Assin Central, has provided an explanation regarding his involvement in prompting businessman Ibrahim Mahama to settle around 14 million cedis in customs duties back in 2017.
In the early part of that year, Agyapong was quoted on live television saying he would “commit suicide if Mahama is not jailed.” This statement emphasized what he believed to be the evasion of duties by Mahama’s company during the importation of their machinery.
When asked about his suicide remark and why Ibrahim Mahama continued to remain free, Agyapong strongly affirmed that he considered Mahama to be corrupt.
“Ibrahim Mahama was bypassing customs duties for all his machinery. I confronted him, and he eventually paid 14 million Ghana cedis,” Agyapong mentioned during an interview on Citi TV on August 15, 2023.
He further asserted that during the period when he was poised to expose Ibrahim, “prominent chiefs and politicians had interceded on his behalf, and now he seems to possess the moral high ground.”
Agyapong has been unwavering in his stance that although politicians should bear responsibility for not effectively combating corruption, part of the accountability also falls on the judiciary due to their persistent delays in handling prosecutions.
An April 2017 report by Daily Graphic outlined the reasons behind ECOCO’s insistence that Ibrahim fulfill outstanding duties payments.
Portions of the Daily Graphic report is reproduced below:
The Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) has issued a two-week ultimatum to Mr. Ibrahim Mahama, the CEO of Engineers & Planners, a private engineering firm, to pay nearly GH¢13 million. This amount comprises import duties and interest on equipment that he brought into the country.
A reliable source within EOCO informed the Daily Graphic that although the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) had an agreement with Mr. Mahama to settle the total amount of GH¢12,755,251.21 within a specified timeframe, he failed to uphold his end of the deal for over a year.
Instead, the source indicated that Mr. Mahama, who is the brother of former President John Dramani Mahama, issued fraudulent checks, which constitutes a criminal offense.
After being questioned by EOCO last Tuesday, he was reportedly granted bail. The problematic check was linked to goods allegedly cleared in 2015.
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