Former Ghanaian Sanitation Minister, Cecilia Abena Dapaah, who resigned after her houseworkers allegedly stole more than $1 million in cash from her home, has been arrested for suspected corruption, according to the special prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng.
Dapaah has denied any wrongdoing, but the opposition in Ghana has criticized the situation, questioning why a minister had such a significant amount of cash at her residence.
The arrest comes at a time when President Nana Akufo-Addo’s government is grappling with the country’s worst economic crisis in years, leading Ghana to seek a $3 billion loan from the IMF. The ruling NPP party is also preparing for primaries later this year to select its candidate for the upcoming election.
Dapaah had submitted her resignation, stating that she did not want her case to become a distraction to the government’s work. However, she denied reports of holding such substantial amounts of cash at her family home.
Court documents reveal that the two domestic workers are facing charges of stealing $1 million, 300,000 euros, and millions of local Ghanaian cedis, along with clothing, from her bedroom last year.
While President Akufo-Addo accepted Dapaah’s resignation and praised her loyalty, the opposition leader, John Dramani Mahama, described the incident as “scandalous” and raised questions about the large amount of foreign currency kept at a minister’s home.
A good governance advocate, Baffour Agyeman-Duah, has called for an investigation by the ombudsman to probe the case further.
