The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has raised concerns over the exclusion of the unexplained wealth order from the OSP Act, citing its hindrance in executing their mandate.
The OSP has been embroiled in a tussle with the Economic and Organized Office (EOCO) and the Office of the Attorney General (A.G) regarding the Former Minister of Sanitation Cecilia Dapaah.
This is due to the AG’s advice to EOCO, against initiating money laundering investigations into the affairs of the Former Sanitation Minister.
Speaking on Day 2 of the 14th Commonwealth Regional Conference for heads of anti-corruption agencies in Africa, the Director of Strategy, Research and Communications at the OSP, Samuel Appiah Darko lamented the limitations of the OSP.
“We’ve noticed something that we do not have when the lawmaker was putting together the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act; they took something very key out of it which in implementing our law we’ve discovered that it shouldn’t have been done which is what we call the unexplained wealth order.
“It was taken out of the OSP act and it is a very problematic issue for us because of the calibre of people we are to investigate. They are more complicated, they have more money, and they have more people. They can get the best lawyers and all that. And this is the provision that would have helped us to do a lifestyle audit in a better way. Currently, even if you are doing a lifestyle audit, the onus lies on us throughout the entire investigation, to show to the court how they committed the corruption.
He further bemoaned the ineffective collaboration by relevant stakeholders, in the handling of corruption-related cases.
Samuel Darko also highlighted the challenges they face in line with their work, where individuals try to create a negative perception of their office, in an effort to taint the reputation of their outfit.
“And then we also faced what we call sponsored attacks and propaganda where those who are very rich and powerful when we are investigating them, they tend to be able to offer some monetary incentives to Journalists and they will consistently be attacking them, spewing counter and false information against your outfit all in the hope to create that impression that we are all the same. Nobody is perfect.
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