The Member of Parliament for Gushegu, Alhassan Tampuli, has cautioned against attempts to undermine or scrap the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), warning that such a move would weaken Ghana’s fight against corruption.
His comments come after a High Court in Accra on April 15, 2026, ordered the Attorney-General’s Department to immediately take over all criminal prosecutions being handled by the OSP, pending formal authorisation. The ruling effectively strips the OSP of control over its ongoing cases, transferring prosecutorial authority to the Attorney-General.
The development has sparked debate over the relevance and independence of the OSP, particularly if it cannot operate without the oversight of the Attorney-General’s Department.
Speaking in an interview, Tampuli acknowledged concerns about Ghana’s anti-corruption framework but stressed the importance of preserving the institution.
“We all agree that the architecture that we have for fighting corruption is inadequate. Whether it is the structure or the personalities involved, the jury is out there for the public,” he said.
“But what is important is that we needed to create some form of an agency and insulate it from the control of any other person, so that such a person can flow. To demonstrate that, Martin Amidu was put there. We all know that nobody can control a person like Martin Amidu.”
Tampuli added that the same principle applied to the current Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng.
“Then by that same token we brought in Kissi Agyebeng. The thing is, we can attack Kissi, but never should we attack the office. The office was created for a special reason. Any attempt to scrap the OSP will just give the game away to prove that somebody is not ready to fight corruption like they promised to do,” he said.
The remarks highlight growing political and legal tensions surrounding the role of the OSP and its ability to function independently within Ghana’s broader anti-corruption framework.
