Parliament on Friday (30 July) unanimously approved the nomination of Kissi Agyebeng as the Special Prosecutor.
The 43-year-old lawyer has now been cleared to take office as the country’s second special prosecutor since the Office of the Special Prosecutor was created by an act of Parliament.
Parliament’s appointments committee on Thursday (22 July) vetted the special prosecutor nominee of the president, Nana Akufo-Addo, and approved his nomination within hours.
With Agyebeng’s approval by the entire House, the next step is for President Akufo-Addo to swear him in to office in the coming days.
Agyebeng, currently a private legal practitioner of nearly 19 years’ standing at the Ghana Bar, answered myriad questions from the 26-member parliamentary committee.
“Executive interference”
With his approval, Agyebeng, managing partner at Cromwell Gray LLP, becomes only the second person to occupy the Office of the Special Prosecutor since the law establishing the Office of the Special Prosecutor (Act 959) came into force in 2017.
Martin Amidu, Ghana’s first special prosecutor, resigned from office on 16 November 2020, 21 days to the 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections, citing “alleged executive interference” with his work.
The Office of the President denied the allegations, noting that while in office, he had been given a free hand and resources to operate.
On 16 April 2021 the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, wrote to President Akufo-Addo nominating Kissi Agyebeng to serve as special prosecutor, in line with Section 13(1) and (2) of Act 959.
Section 13(8) of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act 2017 (Act 959) requires the president to appoint an individual qualified to be named as Special Prosecutor to that position within six months of the Office of Special Prosecutor becoming vacant. The nomination is subject to approval by Parliament.
Acting Special Prosecutor
As a result of the events of 16 November 2020, Jane Cynthia Naa Koshie Lamptey, the deputy special prosecutor, has been acting as prosecutor, in accordance with Section 17 (3) of Act 959.
This states: “The Deputy Special Prosecutor shall act in the absence of the Special Prosecutor or in the event of a vacancy in the position of the Special Prosecutor.”
Ms Lamptey has held the fort for over five months.
The OSP mandate
Act 959, which establishes the Office of the Special Prosecutor, spells out three main objectives of the office, namely:
(i) investigate and prosecute alleged corruption or suspected corruption and corruption-related offences,
(ii) recover the proceeds of corruption and corruption-related offences, and
(iii) take steps to prevent corruption.
Functions of the OSP
The functions entrusted to the Office are:
(a) the investigation and prosecution of cases of alleged or suspected corruption and corruption-related offences under the Public Procurement Act 2003 (Act 663);
(b) investigation and prosecution in cases of alleged corruption and corruption-related offences under the Criminal Offences Act 1960 (Act 29) involving public officers, politically exposed persons and individuals in the private sector involved in the commission of the offence;
(c) investigation an,d prosecution of cases of alleged or suspected corruption and corruption-related offences involving public officers, politically exposed persons and persons in the private sector involved in the commission of the offence under any other relevant law;
(d) recover and manage the proceeds of corruption;
(e) disseminate information gathered in the course of investigation to competent authorities and other persons the Office considers appropriate in connection with the offences specified in paragraphs (a) and (b).
Furthermore, the Office of Special Prosecutor is to:
(f) co-operate and co-ordinate with competent authorities and other relevant local and international agencies to further the purpose of the act; and
(g) receive and investigate complaints from any individual on a matter that involves or may involve corruption and corruption-related offences.
Wilberforce Asare
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