Deputy Attorney General Justice Srem-Sai has disclosed that he and Attorney General Dominic Akuritinga Ayine have adopted a position not to oppose bail applications, except in cases involving exceptional circumstances.
He said the decision forms part of their approach to addressing concerns surrounding arrests and bail conditions, particularly in response to what he described as the Ghana Bar Association’s (GBA) inconsistent position on alleged excesses by law enforcement officials.
Speaking to JoyNews, Dr Srem-Sai acknowledged that law enforcement officers can sometimes act beyond the scope of their legal powers, but stressed that such conduct should be condemned consistently, regardless of who is affected.
“What I know is that law enforcement officials sometimes may do things that are in excess of what their powers are. That is a constant thing that happens every day. So we are all aware that law enforcement officials, even me as the Deputy Attorney General, if a police officer doesn’t know me, they will do things to me that are not right, okay,” he said.
He stressed that the government was not seeking to justify any unlawful conduct by law enforcement officials, but questioned why the GBA would raise concerns about such practices only at certain times.
“So we are not in any way justifying anything that someone might have seen wrong with how law enforcement is acting. What we are saying is that if you see something wrong with it today, then you should see something wrong with it tomorrow,” he added.
According to the Deputy Attorney General, he and Dominic Ayine have deliberately decided not to oppose bail applications as a general practice, although they would consider the specific conditions attached to each case.
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“There are things that we cannot agree are not, you know, right. I personally, myself and my boss, we have decided that we are not going to oppose bail. We would look at the condition, but there’s no way I will go to court unless an exceptional circumstance. I won’t go to court and say, don’t grant somebody bail,” he stated.
Dr Srem-Sai, however, pointed to what he described as a different practice under previous administrations, where the Attorney General’s office allegedly opposed bail even in cases involving relatively minor offences.
“But before we came, there have been instances where minor, minor offences, Attorney General, you know, would say no bail. Even when the law says bail is a right, it will say no bail,” he said.
He explained that his argument was not that the Attorney General’s office opposing bail was inherently wrong, but rather that the GBA’s concerns about such practices should be applied consistently.
“And so the point I’m trying to make is that it’s not as if I’m saying that Attorney General saying no bail is a problem. What I’m saying is that if the GBA sees something wrong with it today, where were they all this time? That is all we are saying,” Dr Srem-Sai said.
His comments come amid discussions over the GBA’s concerns about the conduct of law enforcement agencies, including arrests and the conditions imposed on individuals granted bail.
The Deputy Attorney General maintained that while the government recognises that there can be legitimate concerns over the conduct of law enforcement officials, such concerns should not be raised selectively.
Myself and my boss have decided that we are not going to oppose bail. We will look at the conditions, but there’s no way I will go to court, unless there are exceptional circumstances, and say don’t grant somebody bail. - Justice Srem-Sai on the GBA’s alleged bias, particularly… pic.twitter.com/7eJAB70Z4z
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