The Chronicle carried on its front page yesterday that the Ahanta Traditional Council (ATC) had defended the Western Regional representative on the Council of State, Eunice Asomah Hinneh, on the findings contained in the report of the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) against her company, Labianca Company Limited, a frozen foods importer.
The OSP had probed an allegation and concluded that, as the then Board Member of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA), she took advantage of her position to influence the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority to obtain an import waiver for some imports, amounting to GH¢1,000,000, and subsequently ordered the company to refund the amount, to which the company has obliged. The chiefs expected the matter to rest there, thus their fury.
The chiefs said what was worrying and had caused them to speak was what they described as the disparaging part of the OSP report, which stated that she used her position as a Board Member to “influence the Commissioner of Customs and the Director of GPHA to obtain the import concession for her company.”
The chiefs considered that assertion to be “most unfortunate, and regrettable,” and thus ordered the OSP to retract that portion with urgency.
The Chronicle is strongly opposed to the position taken by the chiefs. We find it difficult to come to terms with their position, with regards to the Labianca matter, to the extent of issuing an order to the independent prosecutorial office (OSP), recognised by law.
The chiefs, clad in red, explained that the concessions were part and parcel of any economic planning and development globally and not only in Ghana. We do not intend to debate that.
As much as the chiefs may be right with their assertion, the unexplained point remains that, why should it take a whole Traditional Council to come to the defence of a company that is not owned by them? Suffice it to say, the owner is an indigene.
That notwithstanding, the question is, since when did the Traditional Council come to the defense of other natives who may be facing similar issues with the state?
If the chiefs could be frank enough to reveal the link between the company’s business transactions and the Traditional Council, Ghanaians may appreciate their hue and cry.
Other than that, we would not be wrong to recommend to the revered chiefs to stay in their lane of chieftaincy and allow state institutions to work effectively.
Anything short of that would leave a dent on the image of the Traditional Council and lead to the conclusion that when the proceeds of established corruption and corruption related acts benefit certain quarters, then definitely, there is no such thing called corruption.
In any case, the company’s refund of the amount involved is an admission of wrongdoing, as it could have proceeded to court to challenge the outcome of the OSP report.
In Ghana, the traditional authorities are revered and expected to be circumspect in their public discourse to avoid badmouthing against them by the general public.
We, as a paper, are worried that the Traditional Council could not convince Ghanaians how the OSP may have got it wrong with the assertion that their daughter used her office to evade tax, but rather ended up accusing the office of not being guided by facts and truth.
On the back of the chiefs’ allegation that certain detractors were trying to use the media for their parochial and selfish interests, it is important that they come clean to name and shame these supposed detractors.
And, while they are at it, they should indicate their interest in the entire petition filed at the OSP, the investigation, the outcome as published by the OSP, and how that affects them as far as their stools are concerned.
The Chieftaincy institution has stood the test of time since independence, but risks its importance if it meddles in the affairs of constitutionally mandated bodies, whose objective is to put the nation on a sound footing.
We were alarmed to read the directive from the chiefs to the OSP, and wondered what may have happened to due process, if, indeed, there is a case to pursue.
The Chronicle is very surprised at the development, which, if not checked, could lead to unbearable outcomes in the near future.
