Former Auditor General, Daniel Yao Domelevo has cautioned government officials to refrain from interfering with the work of the Office of the Special Prosecutor.
Instead, Mr Domelevo wants the president to back the OSP and deliver on its mandate.
The Special prosecutor just recently survived a petition to have him removed from office. Delivering the 2024 edition of the Domelevo Accountability lectures, the former Auditor General said despite his initial disapproval of the OSP, the office must be supported in its corruption fight.
He acknowledged that despite his initial disapproval, he worked closely with the first Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu, to make the OSP a success.
He emphasised the importance of giving the institution the necessary support to breathe and combat corruption effectively.
However, Domelovo expressed concern that the current Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng, is facing challenges and troubles that are hindering his work.
Domelevo called on government officials to protect Agyebeng and allow him to do his job, stating that he seems to be the only person serious about fighting corruption.
“Institutional and legal frameworks are not enough to effectively combat corruption, and that is the state in which we have found ourselves here in Ghana. After establishing the institutions, we must give them the oxygen to breathe.”
“Let me be very honest with you. I was in office as Auditor General when the Office of the Special Prosecutor Bill was put together, and I was not enthused at all about it, but the bill was passed, and I said to myself, well, even though in principle I don’t support it, if this is what it would take for us to win the war against corruption, why not? So those of you who followed events, I was working closely with Honorable Martin Amidu. Unfortunately, he was barred out of office, out of pressure, and we are all aware of what happened.”
“Then comes the young man, Kissi Agyebeng, and the young man is facing troubles and challenges like nobody’s business. So I said, the one who put him there, don’t you know that you have to protect this guy? You should be calling people and saying, shut up, back off, let him do his work.
“So please, government officials and people in government, leave the special prosecutor alone. He seems to be the only person serious about corruption today, from my point of view. So let’s give him the oxygen for him to be able to do his work.”
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