Ghanaian Lawyer, Nana Yaw Osei has asserted that the law from which the Office of the Special Prosecutor was created from prevents the Office from being independent.
According to him, Article 88; Clause 3 of the constitution twists the arm of the Special Prosecutor and gives room for the Office of the Attorney General to interfere in the (Special Prosecutor’s) work.
“The idea behind the Office of the Special Prosecutor was to prosecute corrupt individuals in the country. From the very beginning, I said the Office will not achieve any results because only the Attorney General’s Office is empowered by the constitution to prosecute anyone. So if we really want the Special Prosecutor’s Office to work, then we need to revise Article 88; clause 3 which gives all prosecuting power to the Attorney General”, he stated.
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“Right from the word go, I said the Office of Special Prosecutor was just a set-up as the law establishing the office does not give it any independence”, he told Don Kwabena Prah on the Epa Hoa Daben Political talk show aired on Happy98.9FM.
Nana Yaw Osei noted that anyone who occupies the Office of the Special Prosecutor qualifies for the job but because the law gives them no independence, “then their (Special Prosecutors’) work will be ineffective”.
On his authority, the recently nominated Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng is not going to change anything. “If he is still not getting the power to prosecute on his own, the Attorney General can decide for him which cases to prosecute or not to”.
The lawyer advised for the Special Prosecutor’s Office to be made independent from that of the Attorney General’s. “It is only and only if Article 88; clause 3 is revised for the Special Prosecutor to derive his powers straight for the constitution, become truly independent will I believe the Office can fight corruption”.
At best, Nana Yaw Osei believes the Office of the Special Prosecutor can only function as the prosecution wing of the government.
Article 88 of the Ghanaian constitution talks about the powers of the Attorney-General and has 6 acts. The article states;
(1) There shall be an Attorney-General of Ghana who shall be a Minister of State and the principal legal adviser to the Government.
(2) The Attorney-General shall discharge such other duties of a legal nature as may be referred or assigned to him by the President, or imposed on him by this Constitution or any other law.
(3) The Attorney-General shall be responsible for the initiation and conduct of all prosecutions of criminal offences.
(4) All offences prosecuted in the name of the Republic of Ghana shall be at the suit of the Attorney-General or any other person authorised by him in accordance with any law.
(5) The Attorney-General shall be responsible for the institution and conduct of all civil cases on behalf of the State; and all civil proceedings against the State shall be instituted against the Attorney-General as defendant.
(6) The Attorney-General shall have audience in all courts in Ghana.
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The Office of the Special Prosecutor of Ghana was established after an act of the Parliament of Ghana passed the Office of Special Prosecutor Bill in 2017.
The office serves as an independent investigating and prosecution body to make inquiries into corruption, bribery, or other criminal cases at the national level whether they be in public or private sector.
Martin Amidu was the first to hold the Office and resigned after his age was disputed as he was believed to be overdue for retirement. The Attorney-General has however nominated Kissi Agyebeng for the Office and is pending approval from the President.
By: Joel Sanco
