President commends Attorney-General for role in Law House
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has paid glowing tribute to the work and tenacity of the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, in bringing to fruition the 10-storey 24-year-old Law House Building Complex.
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“When he assumed office as Attorney-General in 2021, after four years as Deputy Attorney-General, the completion status of the Law House project was at 36 per cent. His personal commitment, together with my support, were instrumental in reviving and bringing the project to completion,” he added.
President Akufo-Addo paid the tribute to Mr Dame during the inauguration of the 130-office space with two basements as car park in Accra last Monday. The state-of-the-art facility with conference rooms, kitchenettes, libraries and research rooms, among others, will now house the Office of the Attorney-General and the Ministry of Justice, providing a conducive environment for the efficient administration of the law in the country.
10 Ministers
The office complex, which survived 10 Ministers of Justice and four presidents, was envisioned when President Akufo-Addo was the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General during Kufuor’s administration.
President Akufo-Addo said the strenuous efforts of Mr Dame ensured that the initiative, which could have easily ended up as another abandoned government project, “was implemented to become the impressive structure that we are celebrating”.
He described the occasion as “a day of great pride and accomplishment” because it marked the culmination of a long journey that began 24 years ago, “when I served as Attorney-General in the Government of the second President of the Fourth Republic, His Excellency John Agyekum Kufuor”.
Details
Giving details, the President said the contract for the construction was awarded to M/S EnergoProjekt Ghana Limited in 2001, but due to various challenges, including delays and the need for fresh procurement approvals, the project faced several hurdles.
He commended the Attorney-General for navigating the issues by obtaining the relevant approvals and re-engaging contractors, leading to a renewed effort to complete the project.
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“He has done a yeoman’s job and I say a hearty ‘ayekoo’ to him. After all, and not to be overlooked, he is one of the many worthy products of Messers Akufo-Addo, Prempeh & Co,” President Akufo-Addo said.
Messers Akufo-Addo, Prempeh & Co Law Chamber was established and owned by President Akufo-Addo and a friend and that was where Mr Dame had his pupilage and practised.
The President indicated that the completion of the Law House stood as a testament to the New Patriotic Party government’s commitment to addressing the age-old office accommodation problem that had plagued the Office of the Attorney-General and the Ministry of Justice for far too long.
President Akufo-Addo stated that despite the ugly noise, the fight against corruption had been a cornerstone of his administration with a clear understanding that corruption thrived
in an atmosphere conducive to its concealment. That, he explained, was manifested in the enactment of many laws and implementation of policies, all geared towards fighting corruption and dealing with cases of that nature.
He said because access to information was a vital tool in the fight against corruption, his government in his first term ensured the passage of the Right to Information Act which was being fully implemented, with a governing board chaired by an experienced and respected retired High Court judge.
President Akufo-Addo stated that in 2018, during his first term, Parliament passed the Witness Protection Act, 2018 (Act 975), which he assented to in August the same year and that the Act establishes the Witness Protection Agency to create a witness protection scheme as a vehicle for offering protection to persons who were required to cooperate with law enforcement agencies as witnesses in the investigation and prosecution of cases, particularly corruption cases affecting public officers.
He added that the Criminal Offences Amendment Act, 2020 (Act 1034) had been passed also to amend Section 239 of the Criminal Offences Act to categorise the offence of corruption, previously a misdemeanour, as a felony, and to provide stiffer punishments of terms of imprisonment of not less than 12 years and not more than 25 years in prison.