Full List of 5 Ghanaian Officials, MPs and Former Minister Caught in Former TOR MD Bribery Scandal

• The US SEC exposed an international bribery scheme linking five prominent Ghanaians to the former Tema Oil Refinery Managing Director
• Sitting Members of Parliament and a former cabinet minister are among those allegedly implicated in the scandal involving millions of dollars
• The disclosures have prompted calls from anti-corruption organisations and legal experts for the Office of the Special Prosecutor to act

Five prominent Ghanaians, including sitting Members of Parliament and a former cabinet minister, have been implicated in an international bribery scheme tied to the former Managing Director of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), Kwaku Asante Berko.

According to a report by GhanaWeb, this followed regulatory action by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The SEC disclosures allege that substantial sums of money were paid in bribes by Asante Berko between 2015 and 2016 to secure a power purchase agreement on behalf of a Turkish energy company operating in Ghana.

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The payments were reportedly disguised as consultancy fees and funnelled through intermediary firms to obscure their true purpose.

How the Bribery scheme allegedly operated

According to the US SEC's findings, the scheme was designed to obtain favourable contract terms and state-level approvals for the power project.

Public officers, parliamentarians, and individuals described as influence brokers were among those who allegedly received funds as part of the arrangement.

The use of intermediary companies to route the payments added a layer of concealment to the transactions.

The involvement of sitting legislators and a former minister in the alleged scheme has sharpened public scrutiny of oversight mechanisms within Ghana's energy sector and broader public procurement processes.

Calls for prosecution intensify

The public release of the list of implicated individuals has drawn sharp responses from anti-corruption organisations and legal experts across the country.

Several voices within civil society have called on the Office of the Special Prosecutor to initiate a coordinated investigation and pursue prosecution of all named parties.

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US court convicts former Ghanaian government appointee over $1 million bribery scheme

The scandal adds pressure on Ghana's accountability institutions at a time when public confidence in the handling of corruption cases involving politically connected individuals remains a central concern.

Ghana goes after officials in Berko's scandal

Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh earlier reported that Deputy Attorney-General Dr Justice Srem Sai had announced that the Attorney-General was coordinating with US counterparts to pursue Ghanaian officials implicated in a bribery scheme.

Former Goldman Sachs banker Kwaku Asante Berko had been convicted by a US federal jury in Brooklyn of paying more than $1 million in bribes to Ghanaian officials.

Berko, 52, faced up to 30 years in prison after being found guilty on all counts, including conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

Source: YEN.com.gh