Ghana’s political and business elite are witnessing rising tensions following the recent leadership shakeup at the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO), with the appointment of investigative journalist-turned-public servant, Mr. Raymond Archer, as Acting Executive Director.
His new role has stirred speculation, particularly regarding intensified oversight of influential business personalities, including Dr. Daniel McKorley, popularly known as McDan, CEO of the McDan Group of Companies.
The development follows the dramatic arrest of Ashanti Regional NPP Chairman, Bernard Antwi Boasiako (Chairman Wontumi), which has sparked broader public discourse on whether state institutions are shifting toward more aggressive accountability— or selectively pursuing targets linked to political rivalries.
Archer, formerly News Editor at the Enquirer and more recently EOCO’s Acting Deputy Director, assumed his new role in April 2025 after his predecessor, Abdulai Bashiru Dapilah, was reassigned to the National Security Secretariat.
His promotion is widely viewed as a strategic move within the changing political tides, and it arrives at a time when EOCO, the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), and other state bodies appear more active in demanding transparency from some of Ghana’s top business moguls.
In particular, questions have emerged over EOCO’s posture toward McDan, a powerful entrepreneur whose business empire includes Electrochem Ghana Limited—the continent’s largest salt concession located in Ada—and whose former role as Board Chairman of the Ghana Trade Fair Company Limited led to a controversial chapter in Ghana’s private sector history.
In 2020, a government-backed redevelopment of the Trade Fair site resulted in the demolition of several businesses, including Universal Labels and Packaging Co. Ltd (UNIPACK) and Colour Planet Limited, both owned by Raymond Archer.
While McDan defended the move as a legal step in national redevelopment, Archer publicly labeled it a politically motivated takedown that crushed his thriving businesses.
The long-standing tension between the two men resurfaced in 2023 when Archer, speaking on Radio Gold, ominously remarked, “McDan, he has to pray. I don’t talk too much but he has to pray that his government stays in office forever.”
The narrative escalated in April 2025 when the GRA reportedly requested McDan to submit tax return documents—an action that some interpret as the early stages of a broader investigation.
The timing, just weeks after Archer’s promotion, has led sections of the public to suspect a deliberate effort to hold McDan accountable—or possibly to settle old scores.
Nonetheless, others argue that the state is finally showing signs of institutional strength, asserting the independence of agencies like EOCO to investigate without fear or favor, regardless of business or political influence.
Adding to the pressure on McDan’s enterprises, Electrochem faced a violent attack in January 2025, when unknown assailants believed to be aligned with the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) vandalized parts of its Ada concession.
The incident, still under investigation, underscores the volatility surrounding high-stakes business and political interests.
As the dust settles, Ghana finds itself at a crossroads: Will recent moves usher in a new era of transparency and accountability, or are they merely the beginning of an intensified power struggle between influential players on opposing sides of the political divide?
