I’ll respect independence of your office – Akufo-Addo assures new SP

President Akufo-Addo has assured Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyabeng that he and the entire executive branch of government will respect the independence of his office.

The President gave the assurance during the swearing-in of Mr Agyaben as Special Prosecutor at the Jubillee House Thursday.

His predecessor Martin Amidu, first to occupy the office, resigned citing interference from the President.

“I want to assure Mr Kissi Agyebeng, like I did his predecessor, that not only will the executive, including the Attorney General, respect the independence of his office, but also will provide him with whatever assistance is required to enable him discharge his high duties effectively in the interest of the Ghanaian people.

“Indeed, all institutions of state will work and cooperate with him in the same spirit which he articulated in his approval procedure in parliament”, the president noted.

The President also justified the appointment of Mr Agyabeng saying: “He has the capacity, experience, requisite values, and intellectual strength to succeed in this vital position”.

Agyabeng at vetting

I can’t stop corruption – Agyebeng

Special Prosecutor-nominee Kissi Agyabeng says he cannot stop corruption but will make it a costly venture.

He told the appointments committee at his ongoing vetting that not even God can stop corruption.

“Hon. Chair there was a reference to heavy shoes of a named individual. Hon. Chair I’ll like to state that I will prefer to wear my own shoes in the sense that I am my own man and I’m coming with my own experiences and professional training.

He went on “in this quest, my conscience and knowledge of the law are going to be my guide. My strategy is that Hon. Chair I’m not naive to assume that I’m coming to stop corruption.”

”There’s no way I can stop corruption. God Himself will not even acclaim to that. But I’m going to make corruption very costly, very very costly to engage in’” he stated.

Kissi Agyabeng, a criminal law lecturer, and a practitioner will replace Martin Amidu as the second Special Prosecutor Ghana has had.

Mr Amidu resigned from office last year accusing President Akufo-Addo of interference following his work on the controversial Agyapa Royalties deal.

I’m no surrogate

The Special Prosecutor-nominee Kissi Agyebeng has cleared the air on his perceived involvement in the controversial Agyapa deal, saying he was not in any form involved in the transaction.

According to Mr Agyebeng, anybody trying to implicate him in the Agyapa deal was coming from uninformed positions.

Appearing before the Appointments committee of parliament Thursday, July 2, he said, ”of whoever says am a surrogate of a law firm or implicate me into the Agyapa transaction clearly does not know me because if you know me you wouldn’t make such allegations. So all these that came I took it as coming from uninformed positions.”

“I was not involved in the Agyapa transactions in any form or manner. I am no one’s surrogate. I am my own man,” he told the committee.

Mr Agyebeng was nominated by President Akufo-Addo following the resignation of the Special Prosecutor, Mr Martin A.B.K. Amidu on November 15, 2020.

When approved by Parliament, Mr Agyebeng will replace Mr Martin Amidu and be the second Special Prosecutor Ghana has had.