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Will Akufo Addo's Special Prosecutor Prosecute Only
When Politicians Steal all of Ghana?
By: Prof
Lungu
August 14, 2017
"...Clause 3(4) which was also not part
of the original draft of the Bill, negates the whole
promise that the President made during his campaign
and after his assumption of office to fight
corruption, if as it states the Special Prosecutor
is not to investigate and prosecute corruption
offences relating to the Public Procurement
Act....and the Criminal Offences Act, '….unless the
commission of the offence is in respect of a vast
quantity of assets that (a) constitute a substantial
proportion of the resources of the country; (b)
threaten the political stability of the country; or
(c) threaten the sustainable development of the
country.'..." (Attorney Martin Amidu, 25 July,
2017).
Why do Ghanaian politicians
approve of laws that punish people who steal eggs
and not the entire chicken?
The new Speaker
of the House of Parliament, Professor Aaron Mike
Oquaye, ought to be ashamed of himself for his
attempts at enshrining cover-ups.
The NDC
Minority in Parliament ought not to focus solely on
the process for the enactment of the bill. They
ought also to be interested in the substance of the
bill itself, unless they equally want the NPP to
make fools of Ghanaians to the mutual advantage of
the politicians, (i.e., cover up what some in the
party are also stealing).
Maybe Professor
Aaron Mike Oquaye's recent antics about the dual
birthdays of Ghana is part of the Oquaye plot for
hiding his face by dwelling on the unimportant so
the good people of Ghana will keep their eyes off
the crucial ball.
Why do Ghanaian politicians
and legislators like Professor Aaron Mike Oquaye
approve laws that punish people who steal hens and
not the entire poultry farm?
Why do judges in
Ghana punish, and many times even, direct decades of
imprisonment for people who steal a hen, and not the
entire poultry farm?
And those who steal a
tuber of cassava, and not the entire cassava crop?
And those who smoke a Kwaw-Kese stick of
marijuana that have negligible, if any, impact on
the social well-being of the community in which they
themselves live, let alone impact on the financial
well-being of the whole of Ghana?
Yes, we
totally agree!
Attorney Martin Amidu is right
on point!
The "Mike-Oquaye-Procurement-Corruption-Clause"
in the Special Prosecutor bill that says only theft
that "constitute a substantial proportion of the
resources of the country" would be actionable by the
"Special Prosecutor" is a political farce.
It
is a developing, naked, and self-serving ploy by
Professor Oquaye and officials within/outside the
NPP, as the government of the day, to maintain and
promote corruption between and among politicians,
other high level public officials, and foreign
corporations and interests stealing daily from
Ghana.
Didn't somebody say the other day that
Attorney Ace Ankomah, the top defender of off-shore
accounts in Panama and other peoples' countries, had
a hand in that one, too?
"Procurement", our
Google internet Business Dictionary inform us, is
simply "The act of obtaining or buying goods and
services."
Everything a government obtains
or buys is acquired through a procurement process,
unless it is a gift at arm's length, or stolen like
they do in Putin's Russia.
That, we submit,
is what citizens seriously challenged by officials
operating in darkness and spending public resource
ought to understand, today.
While we have
great doubt about the effectiveness and usefulness
of a Special Prosecutor bill without Constitutional
muster, (i.e., a Special Prosecutor that is
independently funded by constitutional statute and
answerable only to an appellate court and/or Supreme
Court), we nonetheless believe the public
procurement system in its entirety is the major
reason Ghana needs a Special Prosecutor, if Ghana
must have a Special Prosecutor who will in fact
fight official corruption without favor or rancor.
The Special Prosecutor bill for all it is worth,
is President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo's bill!
President Akufo-Addo is a lawyer!
We do
not believe "Somebody...(is)... sabotaging the
President’s fight against corruption."!
The
Special Prosecutor ought to have power to
investigate and prosecute, (or refer for certain
prosecution), any and every infringement of the
Ghana procurement process, at any scope or scale,
during their investigations into any and every case
involving politicians, their cronies, and their
connections and interests.
Speaker of the
House, Professor Mike Oquaye and President
Akufo-Addo must quickly enact the Special Prosecutor
bill without that limitation with respect to Ghana
"procurement process", the "Public Procurement Act",
or exception(s) to the "Criminal Offences Act".
Do not further waste Ghana's time and resources,
Speaker Mike Oquaye!
We say this today:
Totally, and completely remove "Clause 3(4)" from
the Special Prosecutor bill.
Show Ghana what
you've got, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
Pass the Special Prosecutor bill without further
delay.
So it goes, Ghana!
SOURCES & NOTES
(1) Amidu to Speaker, Maj.
Leader: Don’t undermine graft fight (http://www.accrafm.com/1.11181996).
(2) Don’t undermine corruption fight in Special
Prosecutor’s Bill – Martin Amidu
(https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=562784&comment=0#com).
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The Charlottesville riot and
matters arising
Commentary, Aug 17, Ghanadot
- There is a disturbing trend in American politics and
it is the use of racially charged agitation (agitprop)
for the purpose of nurturing other matters not related
to core Black issues or interests... .More
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Hague prosecutors ask to
halt Kenyan president's trial
Reuters, Sept 05, Ghanadot
- The
International Criminal Court case against Kenyan
President Uhuru Kenyatta collapsed on Friday when
prosecutors conceded the country's refusal to
cooperate meant they would not have enough evidence
to put him on trial......More
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Businesses warn of
‘catastrophe’
Ghanaweb, Sept 05, Ghanadot - In a statement
whose tone underlined the growing impatience of
companies with the lack of improvement in the
economic situation, the chamber said it is gravely
concerned about the rising Producer Price Index
(PPI) and its ramifications on businesses.....
More
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The
Nkrumaists are gathering at South Carolina
Announcement, Aug
14, Ghanadot - The
purpose:
To seek and to select pragmatic considerations,
based on the vision of Kwame Nkrumah, for
development programs in African countries...More
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