One of the petitioners in the Ford gift scandal against president  John Mahama  says the president's admission that he accepted a gift of that value is enough for the Commission of Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to take action against him.

Kofi Asamoah, General Secretary of the Progressive People's Party is confident the president, if for nothing at all, will be found liable for conflict of interest in line with Article 284 which states: “A public officer shall not put himself in a position where his personal interest conflicts or is likely to conflict with the performance of the functions of his office.”

His comments come a day after the president responded to CHRAJ's preliminary investigation into the scandal.

The president pleaded his innocence in what some has been referred to as the Ford bribery scandal. The president through his lawyer, Tony Lithur, told CHRAJ the petitions against his client are baseless in law and in fact.

He argued that his client did not solicit any gift from the Burkinabe contractor who had won a contract legitimately from the government of Ghana.

"My client states, therefore, that while it may have been Mr Kanazoe’s intention to donate the vehicle to him as a personal gift, neither he nor his office regarded or treated it as such. 

“Since its delivery to the Presidency, therefore, the vehicle has always been treated as state property and, as can be seen from the facts stated herein above, my client’s conduct at all material times was consistent with such treatment,” he said.

Tony Lithur also told CHRAJ that his client had no role whatsoever in the award of contract to the Burkinabe contractor.

'It is important to point out that at the time the vehicle was delivered to the Presidency, my client was not aware that Mr  Kanazoe’s company had been awarded a contract to construct the perimeter wall around the Ghana Mission in Ouagadougou. 

“He could, therefore, not have played any role whatsoever in, or exercised any influence over the award of the contract. 

“Regarding the award of the contract to construct the Dodo-Pepesu Nkwanta road, the facts are clear that my client could not have influenced its award because, being an EU contract, the EU supervised the formal processes leading to the award. 

“In the circumstances, I submit that the complaints made by all three complainants are absolutely without any basis whatsoever, either in law or in fact, and, therefore, should be dismissed," the president said.

But the petitioners will not be dismissed that easily, at least in the media. Kofi Asamoah Policy analyst of the PPP told Joy FM the president's admission is just what they needed to prove their case of breach of constitution.

Kofi Asamoah

"What is interesting is that the president is admitting to the fact that he received the ford but in his opinion that does not constitute a breach of Article 284.

"What we expect now is a confirmation by CHRAJ that the ford was received and indeed it is a conflict of interest position that has been occasioned.

"We expect CHRAJ to invite us to provide further and better particulars but i think looking at the response from the president, the law actually says that once the person has admitted then there is no need for further argument."

He said they are expecting a finding of guilt against the president on the breach of the constitution.

The Convention People's Party Youth League is also expecting nothing different from CHRAJ. Spokesperson for the group Fafafe Sewornu said CHRAJ must get to the bottom of the issue.

The three petitions including that from the Minority in Parliament were occasioned after a Joy News investigative piece by Manasseh Azure Awuni uncovered that the president had received a gift of a Ford vehicle valued at $100,000 from a Burkinabe contractor Mr Djibril Kanazoe.

Mr Kanazoe prior to his ford donation had won a contract from the government of Ghana to construct a wall around the Ghana mission in Burkina Faso.

CHRAJ has begun a preliminary investigation into the conduct of the president and if a prima facie case is established, a full scale investigation will be launched into the gift scandal.