Former Chairman of the defunct Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM) Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng says he is not afraid of being prosecuted by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP).
Professor Frimpong-Boateng was arrested by the OSP last month to answer questions about suspected corruption and corruption-related offences in respect of the activities and expenditure of the dissolved IMCIM.
He insisted that he did nothing wrong to warrant such action from the Special Prosecutor.
In an interview with JoyNews, the former Minister of Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation pointed out that, “If I am prosecuted, I am not scared. Why should I be scared? I do not see any possibility of me being convicted. But look, in this life, the Son of God Jesus Christ was convicted and killed.”
Professor Frimpong-Boateng, who authored a bombshell report exposing supposed efforts by some persons to undermine government’s fight against illegal mining (galamsey), said: “If bad people want to kill you, they know what to do to kill you. If people who have the power to do things want to ditch you, they will know how to do it because it happens. So whatever you are doing, we should be careful that we are doing everything in the interest of Ghana.”
Frimpong-Boateng narrates encounter with OSP after his ‘arrest’
The former Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation in the interview narrated his experience with the Office of the Special Prosecutor following his arrest and subsequent bail.
Below are excerpts from the narration:
“The background is that I received a letter from the OSP on May 13 or 14 to appear before them. I was to report on May 16 at 10:00 a.m. I did. The letter said they were investigating corruption and corruption-related activities of the IMCIM, which disturbed me a bit. I thought they were going to stop illegal mining, but anyway, I went there and was ushered into a room. My lawyers were next to me, and the Principal Investigator and some officers from that office were opposite me.
“The Chief Investigator put his left hand on my shoulder and said, ‘You are under arrest.’ I asked, ‘Why am I under arrest? What are my charges?’ ‘Well, there are no specific charges. We are investigating corruption and corruption-related activities on the committee you chaired,’” he said in an interview with Joy News.
“He asked if I was ready to answer some questions and I told him I would do my best. I was asked a lot of questions, and it took a little over 2 hours. After that, I was told I had to be bailed before I would be released. I was offered self-recognizance bail. A friend was in the lobby, so he came up and bailed me, and I left. I was told that if the need arises, I would be invited back to the office. That is what happened. And of course, some of the OSP officers went to see my friend’s place where he was staying to make sure that if I absconded, he would be able to produce me before the court.
“I don’t feel comfortable going over the questions they asked me, because this is a prosecutor investigating me. It was a broad-based question on many topics, and I answered as best as I could. And so that was it. No, they didn’t come to my house,” he added.