Deputy General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Haruna Mohammed, has criticized the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) for what he describes as inadequate handling of the Airbus bribery scandal investigation.

Speaking on JoyNews' The Pulse on August 8, 2024, Mohammed accused the OSP of not making a diligent effort to obtain the UK court ruling that referred to former President John Mahama as "Government Official 1."

He emphasized that leveraging this ruling, given the shared legal principles between the UK and Ghana, could have strengthened their case.

"The OSP has done a lazy job because you can’t conclude by saying that you don’t have all the facts at hand; hence you cannot prosecute the case. Did he go to ask for the judgement? What was the material used in the judgement in the UK? Has he been denied the judgement?" Mohammed questioned.

Mohammed expressed frustration with the OSP's conclusion that they lacked sufficient evidence to prosecute.

He questioned whether the OSP had sought the UK judgment or explored the materials used in the court's decision.

This criticism comes in response to the OSP’s recent announcement clearing former President Mahama of corruption allegations linked to the Airbus scandal.

Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng declared on August 8 that the investigation uncovered "no evidence" of bribery involving Mahama or his brother, Adam Mahama.

The OSP also confirmed that the military aircraft procurement adhered to all required standards.

Despite the OSP’s findings, Mohammed accused the Office of performing "shoddy work" and suggested that additional evidence could have been pursued.

He underscored that identifying Mahama as "Government Official 1" reinforces the NPP’s position and argued that "crime has no expiration date," allowing for continued scrutiny.

The NPP plans to review the OSP's report, with Mr Mohammed expressing satisfaction that John Mahama has been identified as "Government Official 1."

"The NPP will state our position but we are very happy that the government official one is clearly John Mahama,” he added.

For context, Ghana was among five nations where Airbus admitted to bribery, leading to a £5 billion fine for the company.

The country acquired three C295 military aircraft from Airbus between 2011 and 2015.

UK court documents revealed Airbus's use of secret agents for bribery, including in Ghana, involving various intermediaries and companies.