Parliament Approves Martin Amidu

Ghana’s Parliament has approved the nomination of Martin Amidu as the Special Prosecutor (SP) in accordance with section 13 (3) of the Office of Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959).

The approval of Martin Amidu, a former Attorney General, nearly suffered a setback following an attempt by Member of Parliament for Bolgatanga East constituency, Dr. Dominic Ayeni who stood up on a point of Order and urged Parliament not to debate the matter which is currently pending before the Supreme Court for determination.

Dr. Ayine has filed a suit at the Supreme Court against the legibility of Martin Amidu to become the Special Prosecutor on the basis that he is more than 60 years old and therefore, cannot occupy a position of as Public Office holder.

The Speaker, Prof Aaron Michael Oquaye, however overruled the Members objection on the basis that it would amount to subjudication of the powers of Parliament to the Judiciary.

Again, the Speaker stated that Parliament has not been served with any such writ by the Supreme Court even as the Member’s application was incompetent with procedural errors.

Presenting the Appointments Committee report to the plenary, the Chairman, Joseph Osei-Owusu said the Committee by consensus recommends the approval of the nominee.

He said the Committee was persuaded the candidate has the requisite integrity, competence, courage, determination, sense of purpose, independence of character and suitable mind for the position of Special Prosecutor.

The Committee’s report noted that the nominee exhibition of selflessness, solid principles, an in- depth appreciation of the task ahead in addition to his experience, knowledge of the law and commitment to be above political colourisation qualifies him enough for the job.

The report also noted that the nominee’s demeanor and composure during his vetting portrays him ready for the work as Ghana’s Special Prosecutor in the fight against corruption.

According to Appointments Committee report, the nominee claimed he accepted the President’s nomination to become Special Prosecutor to ensure citizens benefit from the rich resources of the country by blocking leakages and slippages of proceeds from these national assets.

The nominee indicated that he accepted to become the SP which is considered a lower rank as compared to his previous position as Attorney General because of his passion for fighting against corruption.

The report also indicated that the nominee told the Committee that he is an open minded advocate for the poor and a very compassionate individual whose life is dedicated for defending the defenceless in society.

Background

The 66-year-old Martin Alamisi Burns Kaiser Amidu was born on September, 6, 1951 in Kadema in the Upper East region.

He was the Attorney General and Minister for Justice from January 2011 till January 2012 and subsequently served as Minister for the Interior under President Atta Mills.

Mr Amidu also served as Presidential Advisor on Legal Affairs, Deputy Secretary of State for Industry, Science and Technology, Deputy Secretary of State for Local Government and Rural Development and Deputy Secretary of State for Upper East Region.

He was the NDC’s running mate in the December 2000 presidential election, which the NDC with J. E. A. Mills lost to the new Patriotic Party’s (NPP’s) John Agyekum Kufuor.

The nominee until his appoint Ghana’s first SP was a Public Service Pensioner and a constitutional Defence Activist since 2012.

He was the Executive Director of the Not for Profit Citizens Vigilante for Justice (CIVIG JUSTICE) since September, 2017.

On 11th January, 2018, Martin A.B.K Amidu was named by the President of Ghana as the Special Prosecutor for the newly created Office of the Special Prosecutor.

By: Christian Kpesese/ thePublisher