The Minister for Finance, Mr. Ken Ofori-Atta, in his presentation on the floor of Parliament, has indicated that the Office of the Special Prosecutor has been allotted GHC180 million by the government to equip the office with the required personnel and material in order to discharge its mandate.
Presenting the 2019 Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the government, Mr. Ofori-Atta stated that in line with government’s promise to protect the public purse, the government remains committed to the fight against corruption by adequately resourcing the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP).
He informed the House that the Office rooms are woefully inadequate for lack of shear physical space to accommodate reasonable number of employees.
The Finance Minister stressed that the Office is financially crippled without any ability to acquire the requisite expensive operational anti-corruption and other equipment for the Office to function efficiently.
Mr. Ofori-Atta again pointed out that the government is committed to providing additional resources during the course of 2019.
The allocation comes on the back of the recent public lamentation of the Special Prosecutor, Mr. Martin Amidu. Mr. Amidu in his latest outburst said his office was “almost hopeless”.
Office of the Special Prosecutor and prosecutions
The Special Prosecutor’s Office, which is established under the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act 2017 (Act 959), is one of the highest priorities of government.
The Bill was assented five days to the first anniversary of the government and Mr. Martin Amidu subsequently was appointed to head the Office.
However, almost a year after the creation of the Office, no case has been filed in court by the Special Prosecutor who has on many occasions complained about the lack of resources and subsidiary laws to regularise his duties.
The Legislative Instrument on the OSP
The Legislative Instrument (LI) on the Office of the Special Prosecutor is said to have reached Parliament according to the Deputy Chief of Staff, Mr. Samuel Jinapor.
The L.I. is crucial for the Office of the Special Prosecutor as it will prescribe the procedure for reporting corruption to the Special Prosecutor and how corruption-related cases should be handled and convictions secured.
It will also provide generally for the effective implementation of the Act.
Furthermore, the L.I. will prescribe the manner for tracing tainted property; prescribe the procedure for declaration of property and income; prescribe the procedure for the seizure of tainted property; prescribe the procedure for the management of assets seized under the Act, among others.
Source: GhanaJustice/S.Ayisi
