Prosecutorial Powers: OSP runs to Appeal Court after High Court refuses stay of execution
The High Court in Accra has rejected an application by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) seeking to suspend the enforcement of a ruling that bars it from independently prosecuting criminal cases without the approval of the Attorney General.
The decision was delivered on Monday, June 15 by Justice Eugene John Nyante Nyadu of the High Court’s General Jurisdiction Division 10.
The OSP had asked the court to stay the execution of an earlier ruling that questioned its constitutional authority to initiate prosecutions on its own.
However, the application was dismissed, clearing the way for the ruling to remain in force.
In response, the OSP said it would immediately file a fresh application for a stay of execution at the Court of Appeal. The office has already mounted separate legal challenges against the High Court decision at both the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal.
The dispute centres on whether the OSP has the constitutional authority to independently prosecute criminal offences or whether that power rests exclusively with the Attorney General under Article 88 of Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.
The controversy stems from a ruling delivered by the High Court on 15th April 2026. In that judgment, the court held that while the OSP has the authority to investigate corruption and related offences, it does not have the constitutional mandate to prosecute cases without the express authorisation of the Attorney General.
The court consequently directed that all prosecutions initiated by the OSP be referred to the Attorney General’s Department and declared previous prosecutions undertaken without such approval null and void.
Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng rejected the ruling, arguing that the High Court exceeded its jurisdiction by effectively striking down provisions of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959).
The OSP maintains that its statutory mandate remains valid and enforceable.
The legal battle is also before the Supreme Court in a separate constitutional case brought by private citizen Noah Ephraem Tetteh Adamtey. The suit challenges the constitutionality of provisions that grant the OSP autonomous prosecutorial powers.
In a significant development, the Attorney General, who is the nominal defendant in the case, has backed the plaintiff’s position. The Attorney General argues that Parliament exceeded its authority by creating an independent prosecutorial structure outside the constitutional powers vested in that office.
The Supreme Court has also granted 14 civil society organisations permission to join the proceedings as interested parties. The groups include CDD Ghana and Transparency International, both of which are expected to assist the court in determining the constitutional questions raised by the case.
The outcome of the ongoing legal challenges is expected to have far-reaching implications for the future powers and independence of the Office of the Special Prosecutor and the broader fight against corruption in Ghana.