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He said some of the accusations against him by Mr. Amidu was a disservice to him.
“There is a bit of cynicism around the Agyapa transaction. I think that for Martin Amidu’s report on it to be put out to the public without a chance by people like me to discuss it is a disservice,” Mr Ofori-Atta told Parliament’s appointments committee of Parliament.
The Finance Minister bemoaned the lack of opportunity he was accorded to address some of the issues in the report.
In his corruption risk assessment of the controversial deal, Mr. Amidu argued among other things that consultations over the agreement were not comprehensive and innovative enough.
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He further disclosed that the selection and appointment of advisors for the agreement did not meet the “fundamentals of probity, transparency and accountability.”
The Special Prosecutor in his report took a swipe at the various officials who took part in the processes leading to the approval of the agreement.
According to him, the actors flouted several laws with impunity prior to the approval of the agreement.
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Martin Amidu, Special Prosecutor
“All the parties to the Mandate Agreement are deemed to have known the law but ignored it with impunity in signing and implementing the Mandate Agreement which is null and void ab initio as violating the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921) and the Public Procurement Authority Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663) as amended. This conduct which appears to have been in furtherance of the suspected bid-rigging, in the assessment of this Office severely lowered the risk of corruption, and rendered them a low risk enterprise in the Agyapa Royalties Transactions process and their approval."
The Finance Minister designate, however, disclosed that the deal is likely to return to Parliament in a restructured form.
“We will resubmit it to parliament. The question, in this new normal, is what we do to leverage our natural resources. I hope we all come to terms with how we will capitalize and grow our transformation.”