President John Dramani Mahama has dismissed recent calls for the abolition of the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), describing such suggestions as “premature.”
Speaking during a courtesy call by members of the National Peace Council at the Jubilee House, President Mahama noted that the fight against corruption required sustained institutional support rather than dismantling key accountability bodies.
“And so that’s why we’re resourcing the Economic and Organised Crime Office and the other anti-corruption institutions, including the Office of the Special Prosecutor, and recently there’s been some controversy with the Office of the Special Prosecutor,” he acknowledged.
“I think it’s premature to call for the closure of that office,” President Mahama firmly stated.
His remarks come after the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, and Majority Leader, Mahama Ayariga, publicly urged the government to dissolve the OSP, citing concerns about its performance and independence.
President Mahama, however, defended the relevance of the anti-graft body, stressing that the office remains a unique institution within Ghana’s governance framework due to its prosecutorial autonomy.
“The unique thing about that office is it is the only anti-corruption agency that has prosecutorial powers to be able to prosecute themselves without going through the Attorney General,” he said.
“People had mistrust for the Attorney General because the Attorney General normally is a member of government and is a Minister of State, and so they believe that the Attorney General would be very reluctant to prosecute his own. But if there’s an independent office like the Office of the Special Prosecutor, it won’t matter who you are because they have security of tenure and they have prosecutorial powers.”
President Mahama added that maintaining the OSP would strengthen public confidence in anti-corruption efforts, as the office is mandated to investigate and prosecute individuals regardless of political affiliation.
“Whether you’re a member of government or you’re a member of a previous government or you are anybody who has, misappropriated public funds, they have the lawyers behind them to be able to prosecute you,” he stressed.
While urging patience, the president also called on the OSP to quicken its pace of investigations and deliver visible results.
“I think we should give them a little time. Of course, people want to see, you know, more prosecutions and more results,” he said.
“I’ll just urge the OSP to speed up, you know, some of these investigations and, you know, show people that the office is still very relevant.”
Source: www.Kumasimail.com
