Former Minister of Power Dr Kwabena Donkor has denied demanding or receiving a bribe from the former Managing Director of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), Asante Kwaku Berko.
Kwaku Asante Berko, also a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc banker, has been convicted for paying more than $1 million in bribes related to the development of a power plant in Ghana.
He went on trial in late July 2026 for allegedly bribing government officials in Ghana to secure the lucrative power plant deal for a client.
Asante Berko, 52, and his associates outside the bank are s aid to have paid high-ranking government officials in Ghana more than US$1 million in bribes a decade ago to approve the development and financing of the multimillion-dollar power plant, prosecutor Katherine Raut told a federal jury in Brooklyn, New York in her opening statement.
Asante Berko, a dual citizen of the United States and Ghana, was convicted by a federal jury in Brooklyn on all counts of an indictment charging conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), violating the FCPA, and money laundering conspiracy for paying bribes to Ghanaian government officials in connection with the development of a power plant in Ghana.
In a statement issued by his lawyers reacting to this development, Dr Donkor said he had “absolutely no knowledge” of the allegations circulating on social media and emphatically denied ever requesting or demanding money from Mr Berko or any other person.
“Our client instructs us in very crystal clear language that he has absolutely no knowledge about the allegations linked to him. He completely and emphatically denies any knowledge of a request or demand for any money as alleged,” his lawyers said.
The lawyers acknowledged that Dr Donkor was the Minister responsible for Power at the time of the events in question, when the government was negotiating with ASKA Energy to generate electricity for Ghana amid the severe power crisis popularly known as “Dumsor.”
“Our client also admits that the State, through his then Ministry, the Ministry of Power, negotiated with ASKA Energy for the generation of electric power in Ghana during the relevant period,” the statement said.
The statement said the negotiations took place at a time when Ghana was experiencing “extreme load-shedding” due to a severe power emergency.
According to the lawyers, a technical team comprising representatives of relevant power sector stakeholders travelled to Istanbul, Turkey, during the negotiations to inspect equipment intended for electricity generation in Ghana.
“This was and is the regular practice of pre-shipment inspection,” they said.
Dr Donkor, however, denied ever meeting Mr Berko during the negotiations.
“According to our client, at no point in the course of this negotiation did he once set eyes on the said Mr Asante Berko nor has he since,” the statement said.
