Executive Director of the Africa Centre for Security and Counterterrorism, Emmanuel Kotin, has advised against media trial and witch-hunting in the Turkish power plant bribery deal involving a former Managing Director of the Tema Oil Refinery, Kwaku Asante Berko.
Speaking on the BigIssue segment on the NewDay morning show on TV3 Monday, August 10, 2026, Kutin noted that “this is a moment of discipline, not witch-hunting.”
His comment comes on the back of the prosecution and conviction of Kwaku Asante Berko, a dual US-Ghana citizen and also a former Executive Director at Goldman Sachs. Berko was extradited from the UK to the US in July 2024 to face charges of bribing Ghanaian officials to secure a power plant deal.
Between 2014 and 2017, Berko allegedly conspired with others to pay over $1 million in bribes to Ghanaian officials to ensure a Turkish energy company –Aksa –won a bid to build and operate a power plant in Ghana.
The indictment alleges that Berko facilitated bribe payments, including a trip to Turkey for Ghanaian officials where they received $5,000 each, and payments to individuals within the then Ministry of Power, now Ministry of Energy and Green Transition.
Emails recovered during the investigation show Berko discussing bribe payments, including $20,000 to the “MoP Girls,” who were deemed crucial for acquiring information.
He faces charges of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), violating the FCPA, and conspiring to commit money laundering.
According to Ghana’s Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) which significantly contributed to this prosecution, Berko, if convicted, faces up to 30 years in prison for money laundering conspiracy and five years for each FCPA-related count.
Commenting on the issue, Kotin noted that the US authorities did not name the Ghanaian officials involved for a reason, and engaging in media trial will politicise the matter instead of helping fight corruption.
“You realise that the American court system deliberately anonymised the receivers for a reason. It is not time for us to do a trial by the media or headlines,” he noted, questioning what Ghana is learning from the US with regards to how the matter was handled.
“That is where we lose it. What are we learning from the US jurisprudence? Why didn’t they name these officials? Why are we interested in naming these officials just to score political points and do equalisation?” he quizzed.
He admonished all to adhere to Article 19(2) of the 1992 Constitution which assumes everyone to be innocent until proven guilty, adding that such matters have always taken a political twist when those involved are named upfront.
“It goes beyond the $1million. I’ll urge that supposed named people are still innocent because in the past we’ve always named people and it takes a political dimension,” he noted.
