Former Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu says he is interested in how Legal Practitioner and Chairman of the Electronic Communications Tribunal, Kissi Agyebeng will “independently and impartially” handle some corruption cases when he is approved by President Akufo-Addo and Parliament to head his old office.
This according to him is because of the relationship between the nominee and the individuals/institutions involved in those corrupt acts.
“Asaase Radio and the nominator of the proposed new Special Prosecutor know or ought to have known the extent of the involvement of their surrogate as a lawyer for suspects in pending suspected corruption cases in which the Government showed an undue interest in the Office of the Special Prosecutor which I await to see how independently and impartially those cases will be handled to conclusion should the President submit the name of the nominee to Parliament, he is approved, and then appointed,” parts of a write up by the citizen vigilante read.
The 3-paged release by Martin Amidu follows the nomination of Kissi Agyebeng by Attorney General, Godfred Dame on Tuesday. In the leaked memo sighted by JoyNews, the Attorney General had explained that the nomination was in line with section 13 (8) of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959), which states that “when the position of the SP becomes vacant, the President shall, within six months, appoint another qualified person for that portfolio.”
But expressing concerns, Mr. Amidu said the nominee is a personal friend and classmate of the Attorney General, and the owner of Asaase Radio, Gabby Otchere-Darko, who is a staunch member of the NPP with ties to the seat of government.
While describing this as worrying, Mr. Amidu accused the two parties of using the new nominee as a surrogate and their various platforms and influence to pressurise the President into approving Mr. Agyebeng.
“It must, therefore, be worrying to any patriotic Ghanaian not afraid of the culture of silence to see Asaase Radio undertaking political propaganda beginning on 25th April 2021 to 26th April 2021 to prepare the minds of the Ghanaian and international public to accept the surrogate of the alter ego of the Asaase Radio station and Africa Legal Associates as the Special Prosecutor as mandated under section 4(1) of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2018 (Act 959).
“In the attempt of persons implicated in the Agyapa Royalties Transaction corruption assessment report to pressurize the President to appoint their surrogate as the Special Prosecutor to safeguard their interests, the online reportage of Asaase Radio resorted to direct fabrications, lies, and omissions against me in its narration of the reasons for my resignation.”
Again, the former Special Prosecutor used the platform to warn all government appointees and media platforms to desist from spreading falsehood about his tenure as Special Prosecutor and/or the reasons for his resignation.
“By all means, let anybody root for his or her preferred Special Prosecutor as an insurance against prosecution for corruption in Government but leave me out of the propaganda. I am honouring an undertaking by my silence in not commenting on public affairs. Stop tempting me to speak by the defaming propaganda against me. It will not be in anyone’s interest,” he concluded.
Source: myjoyonline.com
