Security authorities have arrested Bright Mensah Bonsu, a man linked to the controversial sale of a diplomatic property belonging to Ghana’s High Commission in Nigeria.
Bonsu, who reportedly served as a special aide to the late High Commissioner Alhaji Rashid Bawa under the former Akufo-Addo administration, is accused of illegally facilitating the sale of the Lagos-based property for $1.5 million in cash.
The arrest, confirmed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, follows growing public pressure and scrutiny over the unauthorized transaction, which has sparked outrage in both Ghana and Nigeria.
In a statement posted on Facebook on Tuesday, Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa revealed that the funds from the sale were never paid into any official government account and that there was no documentation to show the transaction was formally declared.
“Documents reveal that Bright Mensah Bonsu and his collaborators valued the prime Lagos beachfront diplomatic property at $5.3 million and considered the $1.5 million as a first installment,” Mr Ablakwa said. “The outcome of the 2024 elections must have thwarted their plans.”
The minister also raised concerns about how Bonsu obtained a diplomatic passport in October 2023 despite not being an official of the Ministry or the High Commission.
“From all assessments, he was ineligible for a diplomatic passport,” Mr Ablakwa said, adding that an investigation is ongoing into the issuance of the document under the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government.
Bonsu was said to be regularly seen with the High Commissioner in Nigeria, but had no formal role within Ghana’s diplomatic corps.
The Foreign Minister assured Nigerian officials and the individual who made the payment that efforts were underway to bring all those involved to justice and to recover the funds.
He stressed that the current administration led by President Mahama would not protect anyone implicated in what he described as a conspiracy “not only to commit a crime, but to tarnish Ghana’s international image.”
A full-scale investigation into the attempted sale and surrounding circumstances is expected in the coming days.
Source:TheDotNews