President John Mahama has received 10 petitions seeking the removal of the leadership of two of the country’s independent institutions – the Electoral Commission (EC) and the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP).
The Electoral Commission chair, Jean Mensa, has seven petitions against her and two deputies.
The special prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng has three petitions against him. All the petitions have been forwarded to the chief justice.
The concerns are heightened by how quickly they follow the change of government and following Mahama’s removal of former Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, who was appointed under the Nana Akufo-Addo administration.
Private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu, who is one of the petitioners, has launched a blistering attack on Kissi Agyebeng.
He said “We need to get Kissi Agyebeng out of office. He’s done too many bad things. There is nothing political about it.”
Kpebu has accused the special prosecutor of aiding the escape of former finance minister Ken Ofori-Atta, who is currently being pursued in multiple corruption-related investigations.
He also claims that the National Investigations Bureau had denied receiving any formal request from the OSP to arrest Ofori-Atta – an allegation that has intensified public scrutiny of the prosecutor’s methods.
According to Ofori-Atta’s lawyer, the former finance minister travelled to the US for medical treatment.
Under Ghana’s Constitution, the removal of a special prosecutor or EC official follows a rigid legal path.
A petition is first submitted to the president, who must refer it to the chief justice within seven days.
The chief justice then has 30 days to determine whether a prima facie case exists. If it does, a special committee is formed to investigate and make recommendations within 90 days.
The president is constitutionally bound to act on the committee’s findings.
The actions will trigger a constitutional process that could reshape Ghana’s institutional landscape.
It also sets a “dangerous cycle” of retribution as the new administration processes demands to oust the electoral referee and special prosecutor.
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