Martin Amidu resigns as Special Prosecutor

• Posted on November 16, 2020November 16, 2020
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

The Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu has resigned from his position.

In a letter addressed to President Nana Akufo-Addo, Martin Amidu said his decision is to “enable Your Excellency to take steps to appoint a replacement to that position as required by law.”

He suggested that President Akufo-Addo has not been able to ensure his independence and freedom of action.

“The one condition upon which I accepted to be nominated as the Special Prosecutor when you invited me to your Office on 10th January 2018 was your firm promise to me that you will respect and ensure same by your Government for my independence and freedom of action as the Special Prosecutor,” he stated.

Citing an example of one of the triggers for his resignation and the decision to make it public, the former Attorney General said he has had a “traumatic experience” between 20^th October 2020 and 2^nd November 2020 after releasing his corruption risk assessment on Agyapa Royalties Limited Transactions.

He said while he believed that he was executing his mandate independently, the reactions he has received concerning the work makes him convinced that he was not expected to exercise his independence as a Special Prosecutor and that makes his work untenable.

“In undertaking the analysis of the risk of prevention of corruption and anti-corruption assessment I sincerely believed that I was executing an independent mandate under the Office of the Special Prosecutor, Act, 2017 (Act 959) and the Office of the Special Prosecutor (Operations) Regulations, 2018 (L. I. 2374).”

“The reaction I received for daring to produce the Agyapa Royalties Limited Transactions anti-corruption report convinces me beyond any reasonable doubt that I was not intended to exercise any independence as the Special Prosecutor in the prevention, investigation, prosecution, and recovery of assets of corruption. My position as the Special Prosecutor has consequently become clearly untenable,” Martin Amidu’s statement said.

Emoluments 

Martin Amidu in the statement revealed that although his appointment was announced in 2018, he only received his appointment letter on 5th February 2020.

The said there has also not been any effort to give him the emoluments and benefits due him per his appointment letter.

Martin Amidu said while he was not too bothered about the fact that he had not been given any emoluments, the “Deputy Special Prosecutor has also not been paid any emoluments since her appointment, and there is the need to redress that situation for her now that I am out of the way.”

“My appointment letter was received on 5^thFebruary 2020 (almost two (2)-years after my appointment). The copy addressees made no efforts to honour any of the conditions of appointment in terms of emoluments and benefits of the appointment ever since my warrant of appointment was issued on 23^rdFebruary 2018 to the date of my letter of resignation.”

“I have been an anti-corruption crusader all my life and not an anti-corruption entrepreneur. This explains why I have never put the emoluments and benefits of the Office as central to my commitment and my passion for the establishment of an independent, effective, efficient and impartial anti-corruption Office of the Special Prosecutor before the end of the first term of Mr. President. This has not been possible for several reasons,” his statement said.