Former Director of Legal Affairs of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), Abraham Amaliba, says public officials can be held criminally liable for failing to safeguard state resources, even if they did not personally benefit from the alleged loss of public funds.

Speaking on Joy FM's Top Story in relation to the arrest of former Executive Secretary of the Inter-Ministerial Coordinating Committee on Decentralisation (IMCCoD), Dennis Edward Aboagye, popularly known as Miracles, Mr Amaliba said accountability in public office extends beyond direct personal enrichment.

Mr Amaliba explained that criminal liability in financial crime cases may arise from negligence or failure to protect public funds entrusted to an official.

“The investigating authorities are the ones who conducted the investigation, so they will be in a position to establish his personal liability.

“It doesn't necessarily need to be your personal liability. It can also be your culpability. If you fail to hold the public purse as an officer of the state or to protect it, that could be a matter that you will be asked to answer.”

His comments come amid public debate over the arrest of Mr Aboagye by the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), with the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) describing the arrest as politically motivated.

However, Mr Amaliba rejected that characterisation, arguing that public officials are accountable for their stewardship and should expect to answer questions over the management of state resources where necessary.

He maintained that the determination of criminal responsibility ultimately rests on the evidence gathered by investigators and the findings of the courts.

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