Dr. Dominic Ayine, a former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, is optimistic that Kissi Agyebeng, the Special Prosecutor candidate, will excel in his position if confirmed.
Martin Amidu, who resigned from the office in November 2020, was replaced by Godfred Yeboah Dame, a law professor and private legal practitioner, who was nominated by the Attorney-General.
Kissi Agyebeng’s five-year colleague, Dr. Dominic Ayine, believes his learned colleague would do a decent job.
“Before he started his law practice, we worked together for five years. He said, “I’ve had many discussions with him about criminal prosecution, and I know that if anything goes against his morality and ethical judgement, he won’t do it.”
The Attorney-General, Godfred Dame, wrote to the Presidency that he was pleased that “Kissi Agyebeng holds the required skills on corruption and corruption-related issues, is of good moral character and demonstrated honesty, and meets all the other conditions stipulated in section 13(1) and (2) of Act 959,” and thus is the right person to fill the vacant position.
Dr. Ayine stated that the nominee’s criminal law experience in the area of play would be extremely beneficial to the Office of the Special Prosecutor.
“I believe Kissi Agyebeng’s background as a legal student and a law professor should be considered. Those are the two factors we must consider before passing judgment on him. His track record as a defense attorney is outstanding, and we must consider it. In the area of criminal law, I believe he is light years ahead of Martin Amidu. He has a lot of criminal justice experience,” he said.
Related Article: Kissi Agyebeng is appointed Special Prosecutor by the Attorney-General
The nomination
The President must designate a person eligible for appointment as Special Prosecutor within six months of the Office being vacant, according to Section 13(8) of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959).
The Office of the Special Prosecutor is charged with investigating and prosecuting all possible cases of misconduct and corruption-related offenses against elected officials, publicly compromised individuals, and private-sector employees.
Apart from starting investigations on its own, Act 959 empowers the Office of the Special Prosecutor to collect and prosecute public allegations of perceived misconduct, as well as investigate possible corruption or corruption-related offenses when referred by governmental bodies including the Attorney General’s Department, the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO).
Kissi Agyebeng was admitted to the Ghana Bar in October 2003 and holds a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from the University of Ghana as well as Master of Laws (LLM) degrees from the Schulich School of Law at Dalhousie University in Canada and Cornell Law School in the United States.
Since 2006, he has been teaching Criminal Law at the University of Ghana while still practicing private law.
SOURCE: ATLFMONLINE
