Godfred Dame Joins Calls for Release of Ato Essien: "No Justification"
- Former Attorney-General Godfred Yeboah Dame has backed calls for the release of former Capital Bank CEO, William Ato Essien
- He further criticised the office of current Attorney-General, Dominic Ayine, for its handling of some high-profile financial cases
- Essien was convicted in 2022 of embezzeling GH¢90 million of Bank of Ghana monetary support provided to Capital Bank
Former Attorney-General Godfred Yeboah Dame has added his voice to calls for the release of former Capital Bank CEO, William Ato Essien, as part of criticism of the current Attorney-General's office.
As part of criticism of the 'halting prosecutions' in the uniBank case under current Attorney General, Dominic Ayine, Dame stated that Essien's continued incarceration was unjust.
Source: Facebook
In a statement on Facebook, he said that stopping the prosecution of larger financial infractions than meant Essien's continued incarceration was unjustified.
John Apea, the Head of Missions at the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council and has been at the forefront of calls for Essien's release.
President John Mahama has also been petitioned on the matter.
“In account of the resetting of prosecution we are witnessing, there is no justification for Ato Essien to be in jail. Free Ato Essien now!”
“Why should one man go to jail while others walk free under vague promises of future repayments?” Dame wrote.
Attorney General criticised over Essien case, others
On July 22, the current Attorney General dropped the charges in the case involving former Finance Minister Dr Kwabena Duffuor and seven others, who were facing charges related to the collapse of uniBank.
A statement from the Attorney General's department said the significant recovery of state funds had influenced the decision.
Dame recalled that during his tenure as Attorney-General, the state had reached a recovery agreement with Essien under section 35 of the Courts Act, 1993 (Act 459).
Essien admitted to owing GH¢27 million, and was required to pay GH¢90 million in total as part of a settlement deal. Although he paid GH¢30 million upfront and later added GH¢9 million, he defaulted on the remainder.
The Attorney-General, Ayine’s leadership, has chosen to drop similar cases involving even larger sums, such as the GH¢2 billion uniBank case, without any clear agreement or demonstrated recovery.
About William Ato Essien's prison sentence
Essien pleaded guilty to misappropriating funds deposited at the bank by thousands of clients and to stealing, abetment to theft, conspiracy to steal, and money laundering, among other charges.
He was also found guilty of financial crimes relating to the mismanagement of funds, including the embezzlement of GH¢620 million.
During the case, Ato Essien had tried to challenge the revocation of Capital Bank's operating licence by the Bank of Ghana.
He was initially told he would have been able to walk free if he could settle his debt of GH¢53 million to the state.
Source: Getty Images
Ghana's banking sector experienced a significant crisis between 2017 and 2019, leading to the collapse of several indigenous banks, including uniBank, UT Bank, Capital Bank, and others.
The Bank of Ghana embarked on a comprehensive clean-up and recapitalisation exercise, citing insolvency, weak corporate governance, related-party lending, and unsustainable business models as key reasons for the failures.
This clean-up was said to have cost at least GH¢21 billion.
Mahama promises to reinstate collapsed banks
During his campaign to be president, YEN.com.gh previously reported that John Mahama had pledged to revive collapsed banks and financial institutions if elected President after the December 7 polls.
He said reviving these financial institutions would follow a comprehensive and unbiased assessment of the institutions and their viability in the long run, as part of efforts to stabilise the financial sector.
Proofreading by Bruce Douglas, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.
Source: YEN.com.gh
