Convenor of the One Ghana Movement, Senyo Hosi, has cautioned Parliament that Ghanaians will not accept any attempt to abolish the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP).
He argued that the policy rationale behind the creation of the OSP remains essential to Ghana’s democratic governance and should not be discarded simply because of concerns about the performance of individuals currently holding office.
His comments follow calls by Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga on December 4 for the OSP to be scrapped, with the Attorney-General’s Office taking over all corruption investigations and prosecutions. Ayariga questioned why the Attorney-General had not been sufficiently resourced, while the OSP — despite receiving significant support — “has not produced the expected results.”
Additionally, private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu has petitioned President John Mahama to remove Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng following allegations he made against him.
In response, Mr. Hosi urged national leaders to distinguish between the struggles of current officeholders and the broader purpose of the institution.
“We should be able to separate the effectiveness of the person who is there from the policy value of the office. If you tell me you want to scrap the OSP today, what are you going to replace it with?” he said on The Big Issue on Saturday, December 12.
While acknowledging that reforms may be required, he insisted that the core objective behind the OSP must not be compromised.
“Because we cannot scrap the policy object. We can decide to change the policy tomorrow and come out with a more potent way of having it exercise its powers. But that policy value must not be lost on us.”
Mr. Hosi added that any legal deficiencies should be fixed through proper legislation rather than dismantling the entire institution.
“If there are legal issues with it, legitimise it, but these conversations that go left and right as if we do not want anybody controlling what we politicians do or do not do.”
He stressed that accountability is a demand from the Ghanaian people, not a matter of political convenience.
“Policy has only one house, which is politics, and it has only one goal, which is the people. In this case, the people have spoken. We need accountability, and an independent one at that.
“Parliament should hear this loud and clear: we will not allow any politician to vary that policy intended by the OSP. Those who want to even ride on Martin Kpebu to do it should forget it. Martin Kpebu is not against the policy intent of the OSP,” he said.
