Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, Senior Partner of ALA
Africa Legal Associates (ALA) says the Ministry of Finance has refused to engage it in respect of a letter it wrote to it over two years ago asking for negotiations over a payment claim by its client, West Blue Ghana Limited.
The North Tongu MP, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, in what he sought to describe as an exposè on corruption, dubbed “Kitchen Scandal”, alleged that Senior Partner of ALA, Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, had ‘cooked’ a deal with the Finance Minister which cost the taxpayer GH¢187,356,969.55.
Taking to social media, the lawmaker claimed Mr Asare Otchere-Darko managed to persuade functionaries of the government, including officials at the Attorney-General’s office and individuals within the Finance Ministry, to approve a massive payment to his client.
“Many people say Gabby is the ‘Prime Minister’ of Ghana and what he wants always gets done — well, the volumes of intercepted documents in my possession appear to confirm this perception,” the MP wrote.
Response
Responding to the claims in a Facebook post, Mr Asare Otchere Darko explained that his law firm had written numerous letters to the MoF and GRA to explain the legal justification of the client’s claim.
He revealed that they had “refused to meet with our client since 2021 to explore a possible settlement of our client’s claim which, if not settled, could result in a hefty judgment debt against the country”.
“It is imperative to emphasise that no money has been paid to our client since we made the demand on the MoF and GRA on our client’s behalf. Not a pesewa. Indeed, neither the MoF nor GRA have sat down with ALA or our client directly, even to attempt a negotiation,” he indicated.
He also disclosed that on 13 December 2021, his firm wrote to the Attorney General for an update on the request for the legal opinion and the client’s claim in general.
“In the Attorney General’s response to us, we were advised to contact the MoF and GRA as they had been furnished with the legal opinion by the Attorney General’s office. The MoF and GRA have consistently refused to share the Attorney General’s legal opinion with us despite numerous requests for same,” he revealed.
Resistance
Gabby revealed that, indeed, a demand letter providing details of the sum of money owed his firm’s client was submitted by the previous lawyers of the client, Bentsi-Enchill, Letsa & Ankomah, on 28 July 2020.
“The MoF and GRA deny the claim of our client and state that our client’s fees were rather to be calculated on the total inspection fees, which is merely a constituent of the total CIF, paid on imports. This, if you like, constitutes the gravamen significado of the dispute.
“ALA has written numerous letters to the MoF and GRA to explain the legal justification of our client’s claim. Per a letter dated August 5, 2021, the Attorney General, who is the chief legal advisor to the Government, was requested to assist the parties (MoF, GRA, and our client) with a legal opinion that would clarify the legal operation of the key terms of the NSW Contract. This request was made pursuant to a mutual understanding between lawyers from ALA and representatives of GRA during a meeting held to discuss our client’s claim,” he added in the Facebook post.
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