The National Coordinator of the District Road Improvement Programme (DRIP), Nii Lantey Vanderpuye, has dismissed suggestions that President John Dramani Mahama could intervene to secure a pardon for former MASLOC Chief Executive Officer Sedina Tamakloe-Attionu following her extradition to Ghana.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s Breakfast Daily on Thursday, June 11, Vanderpuye said President Mahama’s leadership is anchored on fairness and respect for due process, insisting that he would not interfere in legal proceedings or shield individuals from the consequences of their actions.
He described the extradition and imprisonment as a major lesson in Ghana’s fight against corruption, hinting at the essence of holding public officials accountable for their actions.
“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 stated.
His remarks come amid public debate over whether Sedina Tamakloe could benefit from executive clemency after arriving in Ghana to serve a 10-year prison sentence imposed by the Accra High Court.
Vanderpuye stressed that such speculation is misplaced, stressing that the government had no role in preventing her extradition, despite earlier claims by critics that she would not be returned to face justice.
He argued that the successful extradition process has already disproved those claims, adding that Sedina will be made to serve her sentence in accordance with the court’s ruling.
“The NPP will be disappointed. First, they said she’s not going to come. The NDC will not allow her to come. Today, she’s here. The NDC has opened the gates, she has come. The NDC is going to make sure she goes through the conviction,” he said.
Vanderpuye further explained that presidential pardons are not granted arbitrarily, but follow established legal and institutional procedures involving recommendations from relevant authorities, maintaining that any consideration of clemency would be based strictly on due process and not on political affiliation or personal connections.
Sedina Tamakloe arrived in Ghana following her extradition from the United States to serve a 10-year sentence imposed in 2024 after being convicted in absentia by the Accra High Court.
The court found her guilty of causing financial loss to the state and stealing, holding that her actions during her tenure between 2013 and 2016 resulted in losses of nearly GH¢90 million.
She was granted permission in 2021 to travel to the United States for medical treatment but failed to return to Ghana for the continuation of her trial, leading to proceedings in her absence.
Ghanaian authorities subsequently pursued extradition, which was approved by a US District Court in Nevada after reviewing the request submitted by Ghanaian prosecutors.
