Deputy Director of Communications for National Democratic Party (NDP), Ernest Owusu Bempah, has slammed the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) for admitting it used funds from accounts of individuals and organizations it (EOCO) is investigating.
It was revealed at a Public Accounts Committee (PAC) sitting that EOCO had used funds from accounts seized from people it is investigating to run the organization. This was during an interrogation of the Auditor General’s report on state owned boards and corporation’s between 2010 and 2011.
The Member of Parliament for Effutu (MP), Alex Afenyo Makin is also accusing EOCO of operating illegally and has threatened to drag the office to the Supreme Court.
Speaking in an interview with Okay Fm’s Ghana Decides program, Owusu Bempah said calamity will surely befall the country if an institution like EOCO, which is supposed to deal with economic crimes and fraud has rather taken advantage of seized monies for investigations for its personal interest.
He stressed that if no action is taken against EOCO in this alarming situation which gives room for the perpetuating of fraud, the country will be exposed to serious danger as drug barons will take advantage of this to smuggle drugs into the country with the connivance of EOCO officials.
Ernest Owusu Bempah further stated that EOCO’s action clearly shows if and when government’s subventions delay, desperation will set in and EOCO will do anything to get its hands on money including using funds from individual accounts.
He called for the arrest of EOCO boss if the country wants to avoid an unpleasant situation because the country is sitting on a time bomb.
“Any serious country will sack the EOCO boss for tampering with evidence at its disposal. If precaution is not taken, calamity will befall the country because the very institution which deals with crimes is now using monies seized from illegal dealings. We are living in anarchical state if EOCO can spend money that is considered illegal. This cannot happened in any civilized country that believes in true democracy….it is a threat to National Security and dangerous for the country,” he pontificated.