National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament for Juaboso Constituency, Hon. Kwabena Minta Akandoh is of the firm belief that the Special Prosecutor office has ill-motive to witch-hunt NDC members in former President Mahama’s regime.
According to him, the Special Prosecutor is not necessary and that it will not serve the interest of the country at large, but rather be a tool for Nana Addo's government to politically 'hunt' NDC members who served under President John Mahama’s administration.
Speaking on Okay FM’s 'Ade Akye Abia' Morning Show, the former Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources asserted that there is way to go about it if the NPP government sincerely wants to set up a Special Prosecutor office to deal with corruption in the country.
He however enquired from the NPP government whether it cannot prosecute anybody who has squandered state funds without the Special Prosecutor.
“I think it is unnecessary to set up Special Prosecutor office. It will not help anybody; it is political witch-hunting they want to do . . . without Special Prosecutor, can’t anybody who has squandered state funds be prosecuted? Is that what they are saying, that in Ghana there is no law which can haul someone to court if the person has squandered state funds unless there is a Special Prosecutor?” he quizzed.
He again averred that “the NPP is in power and so if they know that someone has taken state funds and not that it is political witch-hunting, they don’t need Special Prosecutor before prosecuting the person.”
“If we want Special Prosecutor to be indeed independent, there is a way to do it, but if they said the prosecutor should take authority from the Attorney-General, then it will not help all of us.”
Meanwhile the Office of the Special Prosecutor Bill has been withdrawn from Parliament by government following calls by the Members of the Minority side of the House.
The Parliamentary, Constitutional and Legal Committee of Parliament last week rejected a request by government for the office of the Special Prosecutor’s Bill to be passed under a certificate of urgency.
The minority raised issues of constitutional breaches, stating the bill had not been gazetted when it was first laid on Tuesday, July 18; thus, it is not known if the bill will be relayed in the coming days.