MUBURAK'S CASE TAKES NEW TURN * National Security takes over investigations

Front Page: Daily Graphic, June 6, 2009.
Story: Albert K. Salia
THE National Security Council Secretariat has taken over the investigations of the allegations of financial malfeasance levelled against the Youth and Sports Minister, Alhaji Mohammed Muntaka Muburak. It is to determine whether or not the said allegations were a frame-up.
The Principal Accountant of the ministry, Mr Adim Odoom, is said to have made serious allegations of financial and administrative indiscretion against the minister, Alhaji Muntaka Muburak, who has, this far, insisted on his innocence and claimed that the whole game is a design by his detractors to get him out.
Following this development, the National Security Secretariat has asked Mr Odoom to provide all documents covering the purported payments he alleged the minister received.
Sources close to the secretariat told the Daily Graphic that President Mills had taken the allegations seriously and, therefore, directed officials of the secretariat to handle the investigations.
The sources explained that in all public service financial transactions, memos, invoices, payment receipts were attached.
They said substantiating the allegations would be easy for the person making the allegations.
“So far, no such evidence appears to be forthcoming or exist,” they added.
They said Mr Odoom had been asked to provide the registration numbers of the five vehicles he alleged the minister had allocated to himself, provide memos and payment vouchers covering the GH¢12,000 to enable the minister to buy gifts for his constituents, the collection of $25,000 for the payment of protocol to the Ghana Football Association and the request for a refund of GH¢15,200 with a receipt in the name of Zinabu Mubarak in respect of meat and other food items purchased from the market.
The sources said Mr Odoom was also to provide evidence of the $10,000 the minister allegedly collected to pay for landing charges, as well as the $2,000 he (Muburak) took as imprest to cater for hotel bills and other expenses in Abidjan.
“These are all public service transactions and you and I know that no one can pay or collect money from the bank or receive it without documents covering the transactions,” they said.
The sources were hopeful that Mr Odoom would provide the documents as soon as possible to enable the investigation team to resolve the mystery, as “President Mills wants it to be dealt with in the shortest possible time”.