Posted on: www.dailyguideghana.com
By William Yaw Owusu
Wednesday, March 23, 2016
Governor of the Bank of Ghana,
Dr Henry Kofi Wampah, says there is no reason for him to resign his position following
the arrest of a British narcotics drugs baron, David McDermott, who is married
to his daughter.
He called the bluff of those
calling for his resignation and said he had already made up his mind to see out
the rest of his contract at the Central Bank.
When journalists took the
opportunity at the Monetary Planning Committee Meeting in Accra on Monday to find
out about the Governor’s intentions following the arrest of the fugitive
son-in-law, he said “My son-in-law is my
son-in-law; it has nothing to do with me being Governor of the Central Bank.”
He added, “I have made a statement
on that and that should be enough for you. My term will end this year and I
will let you know when I’m going so thank you.”
Dr Wampah, in a news release
recently, confirmed that David McDermott is married to his stepdaughter, Ramona
Wampah, and sources say they live in the plush Bruma Hills, Accra and that the
fugitive has been in Ghana for about three years.
The British drug lord is linked
to a £71 million cocaine deal in the UK before running to Ghana for safety,
marrying Ramona Sunu who later adopted Wampah’s name. Ramona’s father is still
alive, DAILY GUIDE has learnt.
There are reports that the
42-year-old British of Ormskirk, West Lancashire, who is on the wanted list of
the United Kingdom authorities, entered Ghana with a fake Ghanaian passport under
the name, David Smith, until he was finally arrested on March 11.
Dr Wampah also confirmed that
the fugitive has been working in the mining sector since he arrived in Ghana.
"David McDermott has been
known to me as a worker in the mining sector and has been living in the country
with Ramona since their marriage some three years ago. Until I received
information about his arrest, I had absolutely no knowledge about David being a
fugitive of the British government,” even though the fugitive has been on the
British wanted list for about two years.
Open System
Some security analysts have
wondered what immigration status allowed the fugitive to work in the mining
sector and what background checks were done prior to granting that immigration
status.
They also raised issues about
how the wanted fugitive was able to secure a Ghanaian passport and travelled to
Ghana and how the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) could not do a thorough check
on the background of a white man holding a Ghanaian passport.
The UK’s National Crime Agency
(NCA) said on its website that “McDermott is suspected of being a member of a
Liverpool-based organised crime group involved in a conspiracy to import and
supply cocaine which was seized from a container of frozen Argentinian beef in
May 2013 at Tilbury Docks. He is also wanted for conspiracy to blackmail.”
The process that will lead to
the extradition of the fugitive has commenced but his lawyer, Victor Kojogah
Adawudu, a leading member of the ruling NDC team of lawyers, appears not to be
happy and has criticised the security agencies for trampling on the fugitive’s
rights.
He did not understand why the
security agencies prevented him from meeting his client, three days after the
arrest, telling Joy FM that “Ghana is
a country of laws so good governance and respect for human rights should be the
hallmark."
He claimed the fugitive was sent
to the court without what he called “the necessary legal representation,”
insisting, “he has been incommunicado” and adding, “This Kangaroo mentality” by
state prosecutors must stop.
"It is so sad. Due process
must be followed," he stated and confirmed that the fugitive’s wife was
pregnant and needed to have access to him.
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