Dismissed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Public Procurement Authority (PPA), is said to be unable to explain the source of large volumes of wealth moving through his various bank accounts.
Data provided by the Financial Intelligence Centre and subsequently analyzed by the Commission for Human and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), puts total transactions during the period within which Mr Adjenim Boateng Adjei assumed office as the CEO of the PPA, at Ghs 14.8 million – an amount held in 4 dollar and 2 euro accounts.
Mr Adjei, through a press release from the presidency was on Friday, October 30, dismissed by President Akufo-Addo after CHRAJ ruled that he was unfit to hold public office.
His dismissal follows a documentary by investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni, in which the former CEO implicated himself in the sale of Government contracts for personal gain.
The Commission during its probe found out that, there had been many instances where Mr Adjei failed to disclose his private capacity interest or recuse himself when the Board was considering applications for restricted tender where TDL – a company he has personal interests in – had been listed.
A further probe into the dealings of Mr Adjei revealed that he had opened 6 bank accounts to which monies in excess of Ghs 14.8 million was credited.
The documentary alleged that the Respondent has been taking advantage of his office to improperly enrich himself, to which the Respondent strenuously denied through his solicitors.
However, we can see from the records received from the FIC of the bank accounts of the Respondent that he handled large volumes of cash exceedingly in excess of his known income as CEO of PPA.
The Respondent opened USD Account Number 9040002473180 at the Stanbic Bank on 03 April 2017, after his appointment as CEO of PPA. As of 28 August 2019, a total amount of USD 516,225 had been credited to the account, and his debits stood at USD 504,607.87.
In respect of his Cedi Account No. 9040002313337 at the same bank, opened on 21 January 2017 before his appointment, a total of 3.83 million Cedis was credited, and 3.81 million Cedis debited, to the account between the date of his appointment as CEO and 29 August 2019.
His Euro Account at the same bank also had EU54,500.00 credited and 37,333 debited for the same period, in addition to his UMB USD Account No. “428872” which had seen cash flow of over 110,000 USD between December 2018 and March 2019 alone.
When confronted with the evidence of the sheer volume of cash that passed through his accounts the Respondent indicated that Frosty Ice Natural Mineral Water Ltd does not have a bank account and that proceeds from the sales of the water is lodged in his account.
Frosty Ice Natural Mineral Water Ltd is the company the Respondent owns with his wife, Mercy Adjie. He also claimed that he receives money from other family businesses but could not name the family businesses.
The records from the Registrar-General show that Frosty Ice Natural Mineral Water Ltd was incorporated on 29th January 2019. So how could a company established in 2019 accumulate so much revenue in 2017 and 2018, before its establishment?
Even though, the Respondent is a director of over 19 companies, he himself claims that he did not receive director’s fee from any of those companies except Beachfront Stevedoring Company Limited.
We find that the Respondent’s explanation completely unsatisfactory and that he could not explain the source of the large volumes of excess wealth that passed through his bank accounts between March 2017 and August 2019 (unexplained wealth).
The CHRAJ has since referred its findings to the Economic and Organized Crimes Office (EOCO) for further investigations for possible money laundering crimes.
