The National Coordinator of the District Road Improvement Programme (DRIP), Nii Lante Vanderpuye, has rejected suggestions that President John Mahama could use his office to secure a pardon for former MASLOC Chief Executive Officer Sedina Tamakloe-Attionu following her extradition to Ghana.

According to him, President Mahama is committed to the rule of law and would not interfere in judicial processes or protect any individual from facing the consequences of their actions. He said the former President’s approach to leadership is rooted in fairness, accountability and respect for due process.

Vanderpuye noted that the extradition of Sedina Tamakloe-Attionu and her subsequent imprisonment should serve as a strong signal that public officials can be held accountable for wrongdoing, regardless of their political affiliations.

He added that claims that the NDC government would prevent her return to Ghana had been proven wrong by recent developments.

The former MASLOC boss was extradited from the United States to serve a 10-year prison sentence handed down by the Accra High Court in 2024 after she was convicted in absentia on charges of causing financial loss to the state and stealing.

The court found that her actions during her tenure between 2013 and 2016 resulted in losses estimated at nearly GH¢90 million.

She had travelled to the United States in 2021 for medical treatment but failed to return to continue her trial, prompting Ghanaian authorities to pursue her extradition through the courts in the US.

Speaking on Channel One TV on Thursday, June 11, Vanderpuye dismissed speculation that executive clemency could be used to shield Sedina Tamakloe, insisting that any consideration of a presidential pardon would have to follow established legal procedures.

“Unless you don’t know President Mahama for who he is. But if you really know him, you know that he is somebody; you may be his friend, you may be a family member, but when it comes to certain things, he will let you face the wrath yourself. He will not go to shield you,” he said.

He further added that critics who claimed the NDC would block her extradition had been proven wrong, stressing that she would now serve her sentence in accordance with the court’s ruling.