Kissi Agyebeng, Martin Amidu
Former Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu, has accused the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) of engaging in what he described as “anti-corruption entrepreneurship rather than fighting corruption”.
The Special Prosecutor (SP), at a press conference on Monday, June 2, declared former Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta a wanted person following his failure to physically appear before the office for the second time.
Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng, who announced this, said the office took the decision following the failure by the former Finance Minister to appear before the OSP, though he indicated his readiness to appear before them after receiving medical treatment abroad.
The Special Prosecutor also mentioned that Mr. Ofori-Atta’s request for a virtual meeting would not be granted, and has subsequently again been reinstated on the list of wanted persons while it continues to institute further actions for his extradition to Ghana through Interpol Red Notice.
But reacting to the actions taken by the OSP, Mr. Amidu described the move as an attempt to dehumanise Mr. Ofori-Atta and portray him as guilty in the eyes of the public.
He said, “The OSP has become a rogue anti-corruption agency engaged in anti-corruption entrepreneurship, dissipating millions of Ghana cedis threatening and trying suspects presumed innocent in the court of public opinion, using rented media, compromising investigations and prosecutions as a private venture for the past three years without any positive achievement to show the tax payer.”
Mr. Amidu further accused the Special Prosecutor of turning the OSP into a platform for showmanship and media attack while delivering no real results in the fight against corruption, despite using huge public funds.
“The ruse of inviting Ofori-Atta as a suspect presumed innocent to make statements to the OSP was as usual played out in the media to dehumanise and create in the public mind a prejudicial presumption of guilt on the part of Ken Ofori-Atta, even before a decision could be made whether there was evidence to charge him before a court of law,” he added.
The former SP also accused the OSP of continuing the pattern of waste across four subsequent budget years, thus 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 under the administration of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) without any meaningful anti-corruption results to justify the expenditure.
“The OSP made no attempt to investigate the offences it now claims to be investigating all this while, just so that they could continue receiving fat budgets,” Amidu stated, and added, “This was anti-corruption entrepreneurship and not fighting corruption.”
According to him, the OSP’s sudden interest in prosecuting Ken Ofori-Atta only emerged after the NPP lost the 2024 election, adding that the OSP avoided action while Ofori-Atta held financial control.
By Ebenezer K. Amponsah