OSP slaps Charles Bissue, accomplice with 15 charges in GHC35,000 mining bribery scandal

The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has charged Charles Bissue and Andy Thomas Owusu with 15 criminal counts. Bissue is the former Secretary of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM). The charges relate to corruption and abuse of public office in a mining license scandal involving GHC35,000.

These charges were filed at the High Court in Accra on April 28. They allege that between January and February 2019, Bissue accepted bribes totaling GHC35,000. He received these bribes from Benjamin Adjapong, directly and through Owusu. This was to fast-track the renewal of an expired mining license for ORR Resources Enterprise without proper documentation.

Bissue faces nine counts, including:

- Using Public Office for Profit under Section 179C(a) of the Criminal Offences Act. He allegedly received GHC15,000 on January 22, GHC10,000 on January 30, and another GHC10,000 on February 8, 2019.

- Corruption by a Public Officer under Sections 239(1) and (3) of Act 29. This charge is for accepting bribes to influence his official functions.

Owusu faces six counts as well:

- Aiding Corruption under Section 179C(b). He acted as a middleman in facilitating illicit payments.

- Corruption of a Public Officer and Accepting Bribes under Sections 239(2) and 252(1) of Act 29.

The prosecution claims Owusu received GHC5,000 for falsely claiming he could secure favors from Bissue. He played a key role in negotiations with Adjapong during a sting operation by Tiger Eye P.I.

Initially, the bribe offer was GHC100,000 but was negotiated down to GHC40,000 each. Ultimately, Bissue allegedly received GHC35,000 while Owusu took home GHC15,000.

The Special Prosecutor's office asserts that both men exploited their positions for personal gain. The case is expected to proceed to trial in the coming weeks.