NPP demands enforcement of Sedina Tamakloe Attionu's 10-year sentence

Ghana's main opposition party has called on the government to ensure that the conviction and imprisonment of former Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC) Chief Executive Sedina Tamakloe Attionu are fully enforced, amid allegations of selective justice under the current administration.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) said the 10-year prison sentence handed to Ms Attionu must remain in force and warned against any attempt to interfere with the judgment outside the established appeals process.

Ms Attionu was convicted on multiple charges, including stealing, conspiracy, causing financial loss to the state, money laundering and procurement-related offences. She was sentenced in absentia before being extradited from the United States to Ghana to serve her sentence.

The NPP argued that any move to overturn or undermine the conviction without due legal process would weaken public confidence in Ghana's anti-corruption efforts and the justice system.

The party used the case to launch a broader criticism of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government, accusing it of applying the law selectively since returning to power in January 2025.

According to the NPP, state institutions have been used to target political opponents, while some corruption-related cases involving individuals perceived to be aligned with the government have been discontinued or resolved on favourable terms.

The governing NDC has not publicly responded to the latest allegations.

The opposition also expressed concern about what it described as politically motivated prosecutions and the discontinuation of several high-profile corruption cases inherited from the previous administration.

Separately, the NPP criticised the implementation of the Legal Education Act, 2026, particularly the introduction of a mandatory one-year "Pre-Bar Course" for law graduates seeking professional legal training.

The party argued that the requirement is not provided for under the legislation and should be suspended until the necessary legal and regulatory framework is in place.

It called on the government to ensure that legal education reforms are implemented in accordance with the law and warned that the current approach could worsen the backlog of students seeking admission to professional law training.

The NPP said maintaining an impartial justice system and ensuring equal application of the law were essential to preserving public confidence in Ghana's democratic institutions.