Concerns have been raised by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) about how the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) is operating.

The OSP appears to have been rendered incompetent by the appointing authority, even with two Special Prosecutors, according to Dr. John Kwakye, Director of Research at the IEA.

Dr. Kwakye offered commentary on President Akufo-Addo’s recent State of the Nation Address (SONA) at an IEA press briefing on Wednesday, April 3. He pointed out that the President avoided talking about corruption.

Dr. Kwakye voiced grave concerns regarding the Attorney-General’s approval being needed before the Special Prosecutor can begin prosecutions. He contended that there were inherent flaws in the OSP Act.

If the OSP’s Act is amended and passed without the Executive’s influence, he suggested, it could effectively fight corruption.

“Corruption is such an important issue in Ghana that it is inconceivable that the President would gloss over it. This Government established the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), ostensibly to act independently from the Attorney General (AG), who is inextricably linked to the Executive.

“However, the OSP Act was flawed ab initio to the extent that the Special Prosecutor (SP) is nominated by the AG and appointed by the President, the SP needs the approval of the AG to initiate prosecutions and the OSP is funded by the Executive. It is no wonder that the OSP, which has been occupied by two SPs so far, has been rendered toothless.

“If the OSP is to be successful in fighting corruption, it would be important to re-enact its Act and remove it completely from the influence of the Executive, in terms of appointment, prosecution of cases and funding.”