Parliament has unanimously agreed to abolish the Office of the Special Prosecutor following debates on Thursday that questioned the institution’s effectiveness and constitutional legitimacy after eight years of operation. Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga led calls for dissolution, arguing the office has failed to achieve meaningful results despite receiving substantial budgetary allocations while the Attorney General’s Department remains underfunded.
The decision came during parliamentary discussions triggered by the December 3 arrest and detention of private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu by the Office of the Special Prosecutor. Kpebu was held for nearly five hours following a confrontation with a military officer at the OSP premises where he had been invited to assist with an investigation. He was later transferred to the National Intelligence Bureau before being granted bail requiring landed property in his name as security.
Ayariga told lawmakers the incident raises fundamental questions about the existence of the office, asking what achievements the OSP has recorded after close to eight years. He maintained that fighting corruption is not about littering the place with institutions but about political commitment of leadership. The Bawku Central legislator argued that the Attorney General is the only constitutionally established prosecutorial office and creating the OSP stripped that authority in violation of constitutional architecture.
Both Majority and Minority members described the Special Prosecutor’s decision to detain Kpebu as an abuse of power, noting the lawyer willingly presented himself in response to an invitation. Majority Chief Whip Rockson Nelson Dafeamekpor stated legislators were concluding business Wednesday when news filtered through that Martin Kpebu had been arrested and detained. He expressed concern that Kpebu remained in detention past 10 p.m. despite being granted bail, describing the bail terms requiring landed property as onerous.
Dafeamekpor warned the House created the Office of the Special Prosecutor and if it continues to abuse its powers, Parliament may have to abrogate it. Minority MP for Ofoase Ayirebi Kojo Oppong Nkrumah supported calls to invite the Special Prosecutor to Parliament but noted investigative bodies are beginning to weaponize powers given by the state. He urged extending similar invitations to all investigative agencies about which people have raised complaints regarding misuse of authority.
Speaker Alban Bagbin during budget debates questioned why government would allocate substantial resources to the OSP while Parliament and the Audit Service receive woefully inadequate budgets. He observed that committee work increasingly resembles audit functions due to gaps in institutional capacity. The Speaker referenced a budget proposal to establish a new Value for Money Audit Department, questioning why government would create additional auditing units while existing ones remained under resourced.
Former Kumbungu MP Ras Mubarak said Parliament’s move vindicates his long held view that the institution was unnecessary and has failed to deliver on its mandate. He stated Ghana has wasted hundreds of millions on an office that has not improved accountability. Mubarak argued the country would have been better served by strengthening the Attorney General’s Department rather than creating a parallel prosecutorial body. He urged Parliament to redirect resources to the Ministry of Justice while calling for reforms to depoliticize the Attorney General’s office and strengthen accountability.
However, some voices urged caution. IMANI Africa Vice President Kofi Bentil stated the OSP has not failed but is a work in progress. He argued that if persons occupying the office are inept, they should be removed rather than closing down the entire institution. Bentil dismissed claims that creating the OSP was unconstitutional, emphasizing the country needs the specialized anti corruption agency.
National Petroleum Authority CEO Godwin Edudzi Tameklo described the call to abolish the OSP as a political trap. He stated he prays President Mahama will not fall for this trap, arguing the OSP can remain while occupants established to have erred can be removed. Edudzi believes the way and manner the Office of the Special Prosecutor handled Martin Kpebu could have been done with a little bit of tact.
Former Tamale Central MP Inusah Fuseini maintained that Ghana’s anti corruption fight is far from won, making it unwise to scrap a dedicated institution created to strengthen accountability. He emphasized nothing has convinced him that canceling the anti corruption agency is necessary because the country has not succeeded in fighting corruption. Fuseini stressed the Special Prosecutor needs more time and adequate support to make measurable impact.
Legal practitioner Ace Ankomah proposed consolidating the Office of the Special Prosecutor and the Directorate of Public Prosecutions into a new Independent National Prosecutions Authority. He argued the country must remove prosecutorial power from Executive control. Ankomah said a merger would allow Ghana to combine the OSP’s dynamism with the DPP’s calm expertise, describing the two institutions as complementary rather than competing. He called proposals to abolish the OSP ill advised.
Ayariga emphasized that abolishing the office would not shield anyone from accountability. He assured lawmakers that abolishing the Office of Special Prosecutor will not let off anybody found culpable, promising to ensure prosecution processes are even expedited. He proposed the OSP be dissolved through either a private member’s bill as suggested by former Speaker Prof. Aaron Mike Oquaye or legislation sponsored by the Executive.
The Majority Leader argued that corruption investigations should be consolidated under one leadership, the Attorney General as provided by the Constitution. He questioned which corruption cases the OSP should handle versus which the Attorney General should handle, arguing the proliferation of anti corruption bodies has led to confusion, duplication and institutional rivalry. Ayariga insisted resources allocated to the OSP should be channeled to the Attorney General’s office, which is constitutionally mandated to prosecute criminal cases.
Former People’s National Convention chairman Bernard Mornah condemned what he described as unacceptable and needless intimidation of Martin Kpebu following his arrest. Speaking on GTV on Saturday, Mornah said the OSP should not act as both complainant and judge in matters where its own integrity is questioned. He argued the OSP ought to have referred the case involving Kpebu to an independent body like the Ghana Police Service rather than initiating punitive actions itself.
Bentil had also stated the OSP had zero jurisdiction to arrest Kpebu, arguing that if the Special Prosecutor feels defamed by utterances, he can sue rather than arrest. Bentil emphasized that if the OSP lacks the courage to handle criticism, it should not occupy such sensitive positions. He questioned the legal basis for detaining someone invited as a witness rather than a suspect under investigation.
The Office of the Special Prosecutor defended its decision to arrest Kpebu, insisting the action was lawful, justified and provoked by what it described as unruly and obstructive conduct toward security officers. OSP Director of Strategy Samuel Appiah Darko stated the lawyer had on multiple occasions behaved improperly toward OSP security personnel, only to later publicly present a completely different version of events. He cited past instances including false claims about petitions seeking removal of the Special Prosecutor.
Kpebu after his release described the arrest as unnecessary and insisted it reflected broader problems at the OSP. He stated his arrest confirms Kissi Agyebeng is incompetent, reaffirming plans to petition President Mahama for removal of the Special Prosecutor. Kpebu recounted that a military officer called him stupid and he responded in kind, resulting in charges of obstruction of justice. He complained he was not allowed to call family members to inform them of his detention.
The Office of the Special Prosecutor was established in 2018 under President Nana Akufo Addo’s administration as an independent body to investigate and prosecute corruption cases. Martin Amidu served as the first Special Prosecutor from February 2018 until his resignation in November 2020, citing political interference and threats to his independence. Kissi Agyebeng was appointed in August 2021 and has led the office since then.
