Government committed to fair, thorough ORAL prosecutions - Attorney-General

The Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr Dominic Akuritinga Ayine, has assured Ghanaians that investigations under the Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL) initiative are being conducted professionally and without political bias.

Speaking on Friday during a community engagement as part of President John Dramani Mahama’s “Resetting Ghana” tour of the Upper East Region, Dr Ayine said the government remained committed to accountability while ensuring that no individual was targeted for political reasons.

According to him, the ORAL Committee established by President Mahama submitted a comprehensive report to the Attorney-General’s Department, leading to the creation of 34 investigative dockets.

Dr Ayine disclosed that investigations on all the dockets had been completed and preliminary findings made, with several cases currently being prepared for prosecution.

He explained that the investigations involved not only state agencies such as the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) and national security agencies, but also forensic audits to ensure thorough fact-finding.

The Attorney-General cited the forensic audit of the National Cathedral project as an example, noting that the Auditor-General engaged PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to undertake the exercise and submit a report.

“President Mahama has always insisted that investigations and prosecutions must be carried out in a manner that does not create the impression of persecution of political opponents,” Dr Ayine stated.

He noted that the government’s anti-corruption efforts were already yielding results, revealing that five corruption-related cases had been filed in court this year.

Dr Ayine described the achievement as unprecedented in the history of the Fourth Republic and expressed confidence in the strength of the cases being prosecuted.

He reiterated the government’s commitment to fighting corruption through lawful and transparent processes, stressing that accountability remained a key principle of the 1992 Constitution and the Resetting Ghana agenda.

The Attorney-General assured the public that all cases arising from the ORAL investigations would be pursued based on evidence and in accordance with the rule of law.

“We will not engage in persecution. We will ensure that justice is done and accountability is upheld,” he said.