The Conference of Presiding Members in the Volta Region has declared its backing for the region's Council of State member, Dr Gabriel Tanko Kwamigah-Atokple, in a dispute with the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) over alleged reputational damage. 

The controversy began with EOCO’s investigation into a commercial agreement between Dr Kwamigah-Atokple's company, Sesi-Edem Company Limited, and JG Resources Ltd for gold supply, with EOCO alleging the transaction was unlicensed, despite Sesi-Edem holding necessary approvals. 

However, on March 19, 2026, a High Court in Adentan ruled in favour of Sesi-Edem, stating that EOCO acted without mandate and violated constitutional principles of fairness, and it ordered the immediate de-freezing of Sesi-Edem’s accounts, deeming the investigation as civil rather than criminal. 

Despite the court ruling, EOCO continued to label Dr Kwamigah-Atokple as a “person of interest” and maintained its investigation, prompting the former to accuse the latter of ignoring the verdict and attempting to act in contempt of court. 

He also gave EOCO, led by Mr Raymond Archer, a 12-hour ultimatum to retract its “wanted” declarations and public statements and issue an apology, threatening legal action for defamation and abuse of power. 

The Conference of Presiding Members, at a press conference on Wednesday, led by Moses Awukuv-Danyevor, the Presiding Member for Central Tongu, condemned EOCO’s actions as an “unjustified agenda of persecution” and called on all to respect judicial authority and allow due process to proceed without interference.  

He urged stakeholders, especially the media and civil society, to respect the law and avoid creating narratives that undermined Dr Kwamigah-Atokple’s personality, warning that any attempts to tarnish his image or undermine the dignity of the office he occupied would be met with lawful actions. 

“Let it be clearly stated that any continued attempts to malign His Eminence or disrupt institutional stability in the Volta Region will compel the Conference to explore and implement all lawful measures necessary to protect the reputation of the Council of State member and to safeguard the integrity of local governance structures, while upholding the dignity of the Volta Region. 

“The Conference of Presiding Members, Volta Region, hereby issues a strong caution to all persons and entities engaged in actions that threaten the peace, reputation, and institutional stability of the Volta Region,” he said. 

He urged all stakeholders to act responsibly in the interest of justice, truth, and development, otherwise, saying the Conference would not hesitate to take a series of lawful and appropriate actions to safeguard the reputation and institutional stability of the Volta Region.