The Attorney-General, Dominic Akuritinga Ayine, has stated that criminal charges previously filed against former Finance Minister Kwabena Duffour in relation to the collapse of Unibank Ghana Limited could not be sustained because there was no evidence of theft or personal enrichment.
Speaking during an interview on Starr Chat with broadcaster Bola Ray, the Attorney-General said public focus on Unibank was driven largely by the prominence of the Duffour family rather than the strength of the legal evidence available to prosecutors.
According to Dr Ayine, investigations into Unibank did not establish criminal conduct that met the threshold required under Ghanaian law. He contrasted the case with the prosecution of Capital Bank, where, he said, investigators uncovered clear evidence of dishonest appropriation of public funds.
“In the Capital Bank trial, there was evidence that whenever liquidity support was given by the Bank of Ghana, the former managing director dishonestly appropriated those funds,” he said. He added that prosecutors presented evidence showing that some of the liquidity support was physically transported in a vehicle to a private garage at the managing director’s residence, supported by tracking data.
Dr Ayine described that conduct as theft, stressing that the presence of such evidence made criminal prosecution appropriate in that case.
Turning to Unibank, the Attorney-General argued that bank failure on its own does not amount to criminal liability. He said that where liquidity support is applied through conventional banking operations and a bank still collapses, criminal charges cannot be justified simply because the business failed.
“If liquidity support is applied in accordance with normal banking rules and the bank still collapses, you cannot criminalize the conduct of the owners or directors simply because the risk did not pay off,” he said.
He explained that banking inherently involves risk, including the possibility of loan defaults, and that unsuccessful risk-taking cannot automatically be equated with criminal conduct or financial loss to the state.
Addressing allegations of fraudulent breach of trust, Dr Ayine said Ghanaian law does not treat the relationship between banks and depositors as fiduciary. He explained that the relationship is contractual, and that failed loans do not in themselves constitute fraud or theft.
“You cannot say there is a fraudulent breach of trust simply because depositors placed money in a bank and the bank extended loans that later failed,” he said.
On claims that Unibank lent funds to affiliate companies linked to its owners, the Attorney-General said such transactions do not amount to a crime unless there is evidence of dishonesty, theft, or unlawful personal enrichment.
Dr Ayine said these legal limitations informed the state’s decision to withdraw criminal charges against Mr Duffour and other Unibank directors. He maintained that proceeding with prosecution in the absence of evidence would likely have resulted in acquittals.
He noted, however, that the withdrawal of criminal charges did not end accountability measures against Unibank’s directors. According to him, civil claims brought by the bank’s receiver are still before the courts, and asset recovery remains an option.
“I said they could either offer assets to cover part of the liability or go and stand trial,” he said, adding that his assessment was that the criminal evidence was insufficient to secure convictions.
The Attorney-General reaffirmed that the Unibank case was not one of theft or personal enrichment and said he continues to stand by that legal assessment.