K.T Hammond, Lawyer for former Power Minister Dr Kwabena Donkor, has criticised the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) for publicly naming his client as a person of interest in the Ghanaian leg of the Asante Kwaku Berko bribery case.
Mr Hammond described the approach as unprofessional, arguing that the OSP should first invite individuals it seeks to question rather than announce their names through press conferences and the media.
Speaking on Eyewitness News on Wednesday, August 26, he said neither he nor his client had been contacted by the OSP regarding the matter.
“What I deprecate is this habit of announcements on the radio and the press conferences. It’s completely unprofessional. I, the lawyer, haven’t been contacted. I’m not sure my client has been contacted.”
He said if investigators required information from his client, the appropriate procedure would be to invite him, after which he would make himself available to assist with the investigation.
Mr Hammond also rejected the suggestion that public interest justified the decision to announce the names, stressing that persons being investigated were entitled to protection under the law and the Constitution.
His comments follow the OSP’s identification of five persons of interest in the Ghanaian dimension of the bribery case involving former Goldman Sachs banker and former Tema Oil Refinery Managing Director, Asante Kwaku Berko.
The other persons named are Francis Walkson Kwasi Dzafa, a former Technical Adviser to the Minister of Power; Solomon Adjetey Sowah, a Deputy Director; Lyndon Nii Mettle, Director of Tricorp Group Limited; and Baffour Ankomah Brobbey, an employee of Tricorp Group Limited.
The Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng, has clarified that being named a person of interest does not mean the individuals are suspects or have been found culpable of any offence.
The development follows Berko’s conviction by a federal jury in Brooklyn, New York, on August 6, 2026, over his involvement in a scheme involving more than US$1 million in bribes to Ghanaian officials in connection with the development and financing of a power plant.
The OSP has said it is investigating the Ghanaian dimension of the case to establish the circumstances surrounding the alleged bribery and determine whether any offences were committed under Ghanaian law.
Mr Hammond, however, maintained that any engagement with his client should be conducted through the appropriate investigative processes rather than through public announcements.
Source: Citi Newsroom
