Private legal practitioner Martin KpebuPrivate legal practitioner Martin Kpebu says the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) does not have to wait for former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta to return to Ghana before initiating legal proceedings against him.
According to Kpebu, even if it is confirmed that Ofori-Atta is receiving medical treatment at the Mayo Clinic in the United States, there is still a clear legal pathway for the OSP to act.
“The OSP can head to court with charge and caution statements,” Kpebu said during an appearance on TV3’s Key Points programme on Saturday, June 21.
He insisted that the OSP could travel to the U.S. to obtain a statement from Ofori-Atta, and should the former minister refuse to cooperate, legal action could still proceed. “OSP can go to the US and take the witness statement. If Ofori-Atta says he won’t speak, it does not stop the OSP from going to court,” he explained.
Kpebu underscored the urgency of the matter, warning that the former minister’s presence in the U.S. is no guarantee he will return to face accountability. “Even if Ofori-Atta is in the United States, there is no guarantee that he will return to Ghana,” he stated.
Supporting this argument, political science professor Ransford Gyampo also questioned whether the Special Prosecutor had made any attempt to verify Ofori-Atta’s presence at the Mayo Clinic. “Has the OSP gone to where Mr Ofori-Atta is and he is not there?” Gyampo asked.
This comment came in response to another panelist, Dr. Joshua Zaato, who suggested that Ghana’s National Security apparatus should step in to confirm Ofori-Atta’s location and medical status. Dr. Zaato said, “National security can go to Mayo Clinic to find out if he is there,” and further proposed tracking Ofori-Atta’s passport as a method of verification. “Can the intelligence security of the state track where Ofori-Atta is? If you don’t know where he is, the passport can be tracked,” he said. “OSP should track Ofori-Atta with the location provided.”
These reactions come in the wake of a strong rebuttal by Ofori-Atta’s wife, Mrs. Angela Ofori-Atta, who rejected suggestions by Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng that her husband was evading accountability.
“The Ken that we all know does not run away from accountability. We know that he has been to the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to talk about his work. This is not a Ken who runs away from accountability. I ask the public to remember that he hasn’t shied away from facing up to issues,” she said on June 16.
Mrs. Ofori-Atta was reacting to the OSP’s June 2 press conference, during which Mr. Agyebeng declared that the former Finance Minister had failed to appear as agreed and was therefore being placed on the wanted list again. “It is three hours past the agreed time for Ken Ofori-Atta to attend upon the Office of the Special Prosecutor. He has failed to do so. In view of this, as stated before. I have directed that he should be placed on the wanted list again,” he said.
The Special Prosecutor also dismissed claims of illness as a shield, saying, “Illness is not a shield from accountability—unless certified as incapacitating.”
Mrs. Ofori-Atta defended her husband’s absence from the OSP, stating, “It’s amazing that we have to deal with cancer in the last year. This is the only process by which we hopefully ensure that it doesn’t spread.” She explained that the decision to keep him out of the country was entirely about his recovery. “If I have to make the choice, I will make it again, I don’t know a wife or family who will send a loved one to respond to a Special Prosecutor when they are battling cancer. So, I’m sorry, but this is what we have to face, we have to get him well,” she said on Joy FM.
She also questioned why the OSP declined her husband’s offer to cooperate virtually. “Even through these stressful times, he has always said, let me respond to you by video, it is allowed, so that I’m not the cause of you delaying your investigations. He has also said whatever questions you have, you can ask my lawyers, and we will respond. Whatever information you want, we can give you. So, I don’t understand what is going on,” she said.
The Office of the Special Prosecutor is investigating Mr. Ofori-Atta over several high-profile matters relating to his tenure, including alleged procurement irregularities, questionable revenue arrangements, and controversial financial dealings tied to national projects.
