Dissociate Yourself from the “Divisive” ORAL Team – Ampratwum Cautions Ablakwa

Former Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister, Hon. Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong, has advised Ghana’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, to dissociate himself from the ‘divisive’ Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL) team.

According to him, Mr. Ablakwa’s association with the ORAL team contradicts his new political mandate as Foreign Affairs Minister, both domestically and internationally.

“I would advise a complete decoupling of yourself from the current ORAL exercise, as it runs contrary to your new political mandate as the diplomatic representative of ALL Ghanaians, both at home and abroad,” Hon. Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong stated in an open letter to the MP for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.

President John Dramani Mahama, after winning the December 7, 2024, election, set up the Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL) team even before his swearing-in, to tackle the menace of corruption.

Although the team, chaired by Mr. Ablakwa, was widely praised by the public, it also faced criticism from some political analysts.

The Minority in Parliament opposed the team and advised its members not to honor invitations from it.

However, President John Dramani Mahama defended his decision to establish ORAL, stating that its purpose was to gather information on corruption and forward it to the appropriate government institutions for further investigation.

According to him, ORAL was neither a witch-hunting committee nor did it have the authority to conduct investigations.

Tasked with receiving corruption-related complaints, the team reported receiving 1,493 reports via a toll-free call and 924 via email, bringing the total number of reports to 2,417.

However, the Member of Parliament for Mampong and former Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister, Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong, holds a different view regarding Mr. Okudzeto Ablakwa and ORAL.

In his letter to Ablakwa, Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong insisted that the ‘ORAL vendetta’ would embroil him in divisive political drama.

He argued that Mr. Ablakwa’s continued affiliation with the team would attract negative publicity and cause reputational damage to Ghana on the international stage.

He further challenged that nowhere in the world is a Foreign Minister simultaneously engaged in the persecution of political opponents.