NPP Not In A Hurry To Jail Ex Officials Who Were ‘Corrupt’

The Chairman of Parliament’s Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee, Ben Abdallah, has said the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government is not in a hurry to prosecute former officials of the Mahama administration who may have involved themselves in some corrupt acts.

The Committee is currently working on the office of the Special Prosecutor Bill which seeks to deal mainly with public sector corruption.

Speaking to Citi News' Duke Mensah Opoku, Ben Abdallah, who is also the Member of Parliament for the Offinso South constituency, said his committee hopes to push the bill through before the budget reading later in November.

Member of Parliament for the Offinso South
“I've already alluded to the fact that before you take anyone to court, you need to weigh the facts, carry out thorough and comprehensive investigation, and you need to come up with certain facts which are of probative value before you proceed to court. If you hurriedly proceed to court because you want Mr. A or Mr. B to be prosecuted in order to satisfy political A or political B, your facts may not be adequate enough to prosecute the matter.”

“And this government is not in a hurry to rush any matter to court for the sake of prosecution. This government is taking its time to do what is legitimately and legally expected of it. And to prosecute what is legitimately and legally expected of it; and I believe that at the end of the day, when the time is due, the necessary legal action will be taken,” he added.

Prosecutions of corrupt officials to begin in October

This comes on the back of an assurance from a Deputy Attorney General, Joseph Kpemka, who in August 2017 stated that, the alleged corrupt officials of the Mahama government will be dragged to court in October .

Although the October deadline has elapsed, Ghanaians are yet to witness the prosecution of such appointees.

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin