General News of Wednesday, 16 May 2018
Source: todaygh.com
2018-05-16
Joseph Dindiok Kpemka, Deputy Minister of Justice
Deputy Minister of Justice and Attorney General (AG), Mr Joseph Dindiok Kpemka, has rubbished claims by a section of the public that the Special Prosecutor’s office was not functioning after four months of its inception.
“It is a public knowledge that the Office of Special Prosecutor is working. The evidence is in the media space,” Mr Kpemka insisted.
According to him, the Special Prosecutor (SP), Mr Martin Alamisi Benz Kaiser Amidu, has started working in earnest even though he does not have the full complement of staff.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Today at Parliament House yesterday, Mr Dindiok Kpemka, who doubles as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Tempane Constituency in the ?Upper East Region, explained that the reason for the establishment of the office has began to show.
He explained that the Office of Special Prosecutor has four departments, which are: administration, investigation, prosecutorial and assets recovery.
“As at now some of the departments are yet to be set up like the investigation, prosecutorial and assets recovery,” he stressed.
He was, however, quick to add that the fact that some of the departments were not in place did not render the office non-functional.
The A-G further explained that now that the office has been established by an Act of Parliament and a substantive SP and his deputy have been appointed, the recruitment of staff, investigators and other auxiliary bodies rest with the SP in consultation with the board, which is yet to be formed.
Asked when the board will be put in place, he answered in the affirmative, saying “with all sincerity I don’t know when the board will be formed but I believe it will be soon.”
Meanwhile, the Appointments Committee of Parliament is set to vet the nominee for the Deputy Special Prosecutor, Ms Jane Cynthia Naa Koshie Lamptey, today.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo nominated Ms Jane Cynthia Naa Koshie Lamptey and was announced in Parliament on April 26, 2018 by the Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Prof Mike Aaron Ocquaye, when Parliament was recalled for an emergency sitting to ratify the agreement, establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Ms Korshie Lamptey will assist Mr Amidu at the Special Prosecutor’s Office created by the President in accordance with the Special Prosecutor Law, 2017 passed by Parliament to help fight corruption in the country.
The nominee, who has been a practicing lawyer for more than 30 years, is the immediate past acting Director of Public Prosecutions at the Attorney General’s Department.