The Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has the constitutional authority to independently investigate and prosecute corruption-related offences.
In a judgment delivered by a seven-member panel chaired by Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, the court dismissed a constitutional case brought by private legal practitioner Noah Adamtey, who challenged the legality of the OSP’s prosecutorial mandate.
The petitioner held that only the Attorney-General has the constitutional mandate to prosecute criminal offences under Article 88 of the 1992 Constitution, making provisions of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959) unconstitutional.
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The position advanced by the Attorney-General’s office during the hearing included that the OSP’s prosecutorial powers are derived from the Attorney-General’s constitutional mandate.
The apex court, however, upheld the validity of the law, affirming that Parliament acted within its powers in granting the OSP authority to investigate and prosecute corruption and corruption-related offences without first seeking the Attorney-General’s approval.
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The court nevertheless held that the Attorney-General retains the constitutional power to discontinue criminal proceedings by entering a nolle prosequi. This means that while the OSP can initiate and conduct prosecutions independently, the Attorney-General can still lawfully terminate those cases where necessary.
The judgment may now bring to rest the uncertainty on whether the OSP requires authorisation from the Attorney-General before it can prosecute cases.