Former Speaker of Parliament, Prof. Aaron Mike Oquaye, has broken his silence on the unfolding legal crisis surrounding the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), asserting that no Act of Parliament can override the constitutional mandate of the Attorney-General.
His comments follow a landmark High Court ruling on Wednesday, which determined that the OSP does not possess the constitutional authority to prosecute cases without the express authorisation of the Attorney-General, despite the provisions of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959).
In an interview, April 16, Prof. Oquaye, who presided over the very Parliament that passed the OSP Act, stated that the court’s decision was “not strange at all”.
He argued that as a legalistic person, he must uphold the hierarchy of laws, where the 1992 Constitution remains the supreme authority.
“The constitutional provisions we give the Attorney General as the sole authority to prosecute cannot co-exist with another organisation until the law of the Constitution is changed,” Prof. Oquaye stated. “If it’s against the law, it’s against the law.”
When reminded that the OSP Act was passed during his tenure as Speaker, he noted that while he was “very much aware”, a Speaker does not vote and is merely a facilitator of the House’s will.
The Proliferation of Institutions
Prof. Oquaye expressed concern over the trend of creating multiple institutions to solve singular problems.
Instead of “legislating the proliferation of institutions”, he advocated for strengthening existing ones. He suggested that if the public fears the Attorney-General will not prosecute members of their own government, the solution lies in constitutional reform rather than bypassing legislation.
“All our institutions must be made stronger… The institution that is there to do a job, give it every authority, every facility, every human power, every ICT resource, and anything so that they can deliver,” he urged.
Background: The Article 88 Conflict
The controversy hinges on Article 88 of the 1992 Constitution, which designates the Attorney General as the fountain of all criminal prosecutions in Ghana.
When the OSP was created in 2017, it was designed to be independent to avoid political interference in corruption cases.
However, legal scholars have long warned that unless the Constitution itself were amended, any power granted to the OSP by an Act of Parliament (Act 959) would remain subordinate to the Attorney-General’s constitutional monopoly.
Prof. Oquaye predicted that the matter would inevitably escalate to the highest court in the land to provide a definitive settlement on the boundaries of prosecutorial independence in Ghana.
“This is something that must be finally resolved. I trust that it will go finally to the Supreme Court. Then we shall know for sure,” he said.
The former Speaker’s intervention adds significant weight to the growing debate, suggesting that the only path forward for a truly independent Special Prosecutor is a major constitutional amendment, a process that requires a national referendum for entrenched clauses.
