Member of parliament for Tamale North, Alhassan Suhuyini, has revealed that the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has not lived up to the expectations of those who promoted the setting up of the office.
According to him, the expectation of those who promoted the setting up of the OSP was that the office will be used to create the appearance of a commitment to the fight against corruption and to go after political opponents.
In light of this, he stated that when such expectation is being used as a yardstick, one would say it has not lived up to expectation.
“Because that hasn’t happened, the occupants of that office are complaining of frustrations and by that extension, I can say it has not lived up to the expectation of the promoters of that office…”
Alhassan Suhuyini
Furthermore, Mr Suhuyini stated that the people who promoted the setting up of the office had a different idea of what they wanted the office to achieve and that was not known to Ghanaians because they all had very high expectations of that office.
Justifying his stance, he noted that when Martin Amidu was appointed, the expectations went higher, and people thought that was the way to go.
“But when you look back and listen to Martin Amidu’s frustrations, you begin to wonder if indeed the aim of setting up that office was in sync with the aim of civil society organizations and Ghanaians in general. Look, Martin Amidu’s troubles got to the head when he touched the finance minister – the finance minister who is known by all to be the darling of the President despite opposition from even members of parliament from the NPP side, he remains in office…”
Alhassan Suhuyini
On the other hand, Mr Suhuyini revealed that although that may be the expectation of the promoters, he believes that the office can still be useful.
In this regard, he indicated that there is the need to realign the mindset and thinking of those in government to understand that the office is to serve Ghanaians and to ensure that corruption is a high-risk enterprise.
Additionally, he noted that the office should not choose between political party affiliations or religious affiliations when it comes to application of the law against people who fall foul of it.
“With that mindset, I think that the office can still live up to the expectations that we all have of it…”
Alhassan Suhuyini
Reacting to the comment of the Speaker of parliament, Alban Bagbin, who expressed doubts about the effectiveness of the act establishing the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), the Tamale North legislator underscored that what the Speaker said was a rehash of the debate that took place prior to the bill to set up the OSP was passed.
He explained that one can understand the point that the Speaker is making based on how consistent he’s always been on issues that he deems wrong or right.
“So, clearly, I’m not surprised he is repeating this point that he has made many times even before the Office of the Special Prosecutor was set up. Many at the time, I know, agreed with him. In fact, I was one of the people who also was persuaded by the argument that we could get better than set up an Office of Special Prosecutor.”
Alhassan Suhuyini
Separation of ministry of justice and Attorney General’s office
Elaborating on his position, Mr Suhuyini highlighted that he is persuaded more by the argument that there is the need for the country to revise the constitution to separate the Attorney General from the Minister of Justice.
Buttressing his point, he revealed that a number of cases that Yvonne Atakora Obuobisa, one of the deputy prosecutors at the Attorney General’s office, has been part of its outcome has been admirable. He stated that he admires her consistency and commitment to get judgment in favor of government in many of the cases that he has followed.
“I want to believe that she is not really influenced that much politically because I see that some of the cases that you find her prosecuting and even securing judgement, you’d think that they have some political impact. Somehow, the Attorney General or minister of justice either finds her so strong and so competent and is supporting her.”
Alhassan Suhuyini
Moreover, Mr Suhuyini iterated the need for separation of office when it comes to the Attorney General and the minister of justice.
He stated that in cases where the two offices are separated and there’s somebody who is determined to do right and ensure that people are accountable to the law, there will not be a need of a Special Prosecutor office.
“… That was the idea that was defeated and the whole idea of setting up a Special Prosecutor in my view was aimed at achieving something other than what we all expected. Things that have happened since it was set up bears me out in my conviction that the office was set up for an agenda other than what we all expected.”
Alhassan Suhuyini
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