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Emmanuel Ebo Hawkson
2 minutes read
An Accra High Court has ruled that the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) does not have the independent authority to prosecute criminal cases, directing that all matters initiated by the anti-corruption body be referred to the Attorney-General’s Department.
The decision, delivered on Wednesday, has cast uncertainty over ongoing prosecutions being handled by the OSP, placing them effectively in abeyance pending further legal direction.
Presiding judge, Justice John Eugene Nyadu Nyante, held that although the OSP is empowered to investigate corruption-related offences, it lacks the constitutional mandate to independently initiate prosecutions.
The court based its ruling on Article 88 of the 1992 Constitution, which vests prosecutorial authority in the Attorney-General.
The decision followed an application for quo warranto by Peter Achibold Hyde, who challenged the legal authority of the OSP to undertake prosecutions.
In its immediate reaction, the OSP strongly criticised the ruling, arguing that the High Court had exceeded its jurisdiction.
In a statement issued shortly after the decision, the anti-graft body indicated that it had begun steps to challenge the ruling at the appropriate forum.
“The OSP states that it is taking steps to quickly overturn the decision of the General Jurisdiction Court since the High Court does not have jurisdiction to, in effect, strike down parts of an Act of Parliament as unconstitutional. It is only the Supreme Court which can strike down parts of an Act of Parliament as unconstitutional,” the OSP stated.
The development is expected to trigger significant legal debate over the scope of the OSP’s mandate and the broader framework for prosecuting corruption-related offences in Ghana.
