A former banker at Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Asante Berko has denied arranging at least US$2.5 million in bribes meant to be paid to Ghana government officials and Members of Parliament (MPs) in a bid to help a Turkish company secure a power purchase agreement deal in Ghana.
Asante Berko who is currently the Managing Director of the Tema Oil Refinery has been charged by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for allegedly making payment to gain approval for a client’s power plant project from “2015 through at least 2016”, according to court documents from New York.
Mr. Berko is alleged to have funnelled the bribes through a Ghana-based intermediary for onward disbursement.
False claims
But the former banker in a statement clarified that although the US SEC had initiated proceedings against him, allegations that he bribed government officials and MPs are completely false.
“While it is true that the SEC has just this week issued such proceedings against me, the allegations that government officials and Members of Parliament were bribed by me are completely false.”
“I state categorically that I have not paid any bribes to government officials, Members of Parliament nor any officials of Parliament. I have had no contact with Members of Parliament nor officials of Parliament, regarding the approval of this transaction,” he said in the statement.
Below is the full statement from Asante Berko:
