Former Director of Legal Affairs of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) has dismissed claims that the arrest of former Executive Secretary of the Inter-Ministerial Coordinating Committee on Decentralisation (IMCCoD), Dennis Edward Aboagye, popularly known as Miracles, is politically motivated, insisting that the case is about accountability for the management of public resources.

Speaking on Joy FM's Top Story, Abraham Amaliba said public officials are required to account for their stewardship and should expect to be investigated where questions arise over the use of state funds.

According to him, the Economic and Organised Crime Office's (EOCO) statement clearly indicates that Mr Aboagye occupied a public office and is being investigated over the alleged disappearance of public funds.

“Miracles occupied an office. Are public officials held accountable for the offices they hold? Yes. When you read the EOCO statement, it is very clear that Miracles occupied an office and there was an amount of money that went missing, and for that matter, they are holding him accountable. And not he alone,” he said.

Responding to claims by the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) that the arrest was politically motivated, Mr Amaliba argued that “there is no law that says that you cannot be arrested at any time or in some places.”

He also questioned whether Mr Aboagye had informed EOCO before travelling outside the country while under investigation.

“Miracles was under investigation. Did he inform EOCO that he was leaving the country? So these are the questions that we need to ask rather than saying that we are witch-hunting people.”

Mr Amaliba further explained that in financial crime investigations, criminal responsibility is not limited to personally benefiting from public funds.

According to him, a public official may also be held liable for failing to safeguard state resources entrusted to them.

“It doesn't necessarily need to be your personal liability. 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.”

He stressed that it is the responsibility of investigators to establish the level of an individual's culpability through the investigative process.

Mr Amaliba maintained that the legal process should be allowed to take its course, adding that allegations of political persecution should not distract from the need for public officials to account for their stewardship.