Private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu has raised concerns about potential disruptions to the operations of the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) due to the petition seeking the removal of Kissi Agyebeng from office.
The petition, submitted by former Special Prosecutor Martin Amidu, calls on President Akufo-Addo to remove Agyebeng, citing several infractions as the basis for his removal.
Speaking in an interview on Eyewitness News on May 17, Mr. Kpebu argued that the mere initiation of the removal process, and its public announcement, casts a shadow over the OSP, creating an unwelcome distraction at a critical time for the institution.
However, the democratic process, the legal practitioner added, must be allowed to take its due course.
“The petition will have an impact because it is going to disrupt the OSP but we just hope that he will be strong and keep the fight going. But you can’t run away from the fact that even the announcement of this alone will cause him some embarrassment for it is quite a big disruption,” he stated.
Considering the concerns raised by Martin Amidu in his petition to the president, Martin Kpebu said the issues as cited, such as the non-compliance with a Right to Information (RTI) request, do not typically warrant the removal of an officeholder.
Instead, Kpebu recommends escalating the matter to the RTI Commission and, if necessary, pursuing legal action.
Furthermore, Kpebu drew parallels with the police force, where instances of rights abuses through unlawful arrests are addressed through lawsuits for compensation rather than calls for the removal of police officials.
“On the face of it, these are not matters ordinarily you should say somebody be removed. So let’s say, Mr Amidu asked for some information through the RTI request and he says Kissi Agyebeng didn’t give him. But if you do an RTI request and the office holder doesn’t give you escalate it. You go to the RTI Commission and then if the commission makes a ruling in your case and the institution doesn’t comply, then you go to court.
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