Member of Parliament for the Keta Constituency, Mr Richard Quashigah

Quashigah kicks against establishment of Office of Special Prosecutor

Sebastian Syme Politics Mar - 31 - 2017 , 08:25 2 minutes read

The Member of Parliament for the Keta Constituency, Mr Richard Quashigah, has kicked against the establishment of the Office of the Special Prosecutor proposed by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government.

He told the Daily Graphic yesterday that the Special Prosecutor would only be a political appointee who would not work independently but under the instructions of the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice.

Mr Quashigah said the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) should rather be well resourced to carry out the work of an independent investigative body spelt out in the Constitution.

He added that CHRAJ had the technical capacity to carry out the work of a special prosecutor if given the needed funding.

Mr Quashigah said CHRAJ had proven per its track record that it could be independent in its investigation, so there was no need for the creation of a new body to do investigations.

The issue of the creation of the Office of the Special Prosecutor was one of the campaign promises of the NPP in the 2016 general election.

Since assuming power on January 7, 2017, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has given indications of his readiness to follow the due process to create the Office of the Special Prosecutor to aid in the fight against corruption.

CHRAJ budget

Parliament had earlier approved GH¢37,816,401 for the implementation of the activities and programmes of CHRAJ for the 2017 financial year.

Out of the GH¢37,816,401, a total of GH¢14,823,550 goes for compensation, GH¢7,351,306 for goods and services and GH¢15,641,545 for capital expenditure.

The report of the Special Budget Committee on the 2017 annual budget estimates of CHRAJ indicated that the Commission lacked adequate office space to accommodate its members of staff.

The committee was also informed that CHRAJ was relying on obsolete computers and investigative equipment in the performance of its functions.

The report said the situation hampered the ability of officers to effectively discharge the functions of the Commission, a situation which made it difficult for it to retain its professionals.