Dr. Samuel Akoto Bamford, a principal research scientist at the School of Nuclear and Allied Sciences, has cast doubt on a key report by the Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) that forms the basis of the prosecution against former COCOBOD CEO Dr. Stephen Opuni and businessman Seidu Agongo. The two are facing charges of defrauding the state by allegedly causing a financial loss of $271 million.
The prosecution’s case relies heavily on a GSA forensic science laboratory report, which claims that substances purchased by COCOBOD, purported to be fertilisers, were not actually fertilisers. However, Seidu Agongo challenged this claim by requesting an independent analysis from Dr. Bamford.
In his testimony, Dr. Bamford explained that the reference standard and test methods used in the GSA report were designed for analysing drinking water, not fertilisers. He outlined that water and fertilisers have different sample matrices, analytical parameters, concentration levels, and regulatory specifications, meaning that separate test methods are needed for each.
Dr. Bamford concluded that the GSA report was contradictory and should not be used to determine whether the products were fertilisers. He also testified about a second GSA report, produced by the Material Science Laboratory, which confirmed the products were indeed fertilisers. He stated that the methods used in the second report were appropriate and the results reliable.
Dr. Bamford urged the court to accept the second report in determining whether the products in question were fertilisers.
Source:TheDotNews