Prosecute Charlotte Osei and her two deputies – AFAG

Pro-NPP pressure group, Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG), has called on government to ensure the prosecution of top officials of the Electoral Commission who were removed from office recently for alleged “infractions” and “misbehaviour.”

According to the group, the move will serve as a deterrent to other public officials who engage in corrupt practices or abuse their offices.

“Prosecute the EC Chair and the deputies if the allegations and counter allegations of corruption among them were established by the [Chief Justice’s] CJ’s committee.”

“Simply put, we want all persons implicated in any act of corruption to face the law. This will serve as a deterrent to other public office holders. AFAG has taken the position that if ‘corrupt’ public officials are merely fired for corruption, it serves no purpose to jail petty thieves,” the group said in a statement.

President Nana Akufo-Addon removed Charlotte and her deputies, Amadu Sulley and Georgina Opoku Amankwah from office on Thursday for infractions such as procurement breaches, wrongful payment of official funds into private bank accounts among others.

This follows recommendations by a committee set up by the Chief Justice to investigate petitions against the three top EC officials.

Charlotte according to the report has six allegations against her, four against Amadu Sulley and four against Georgina Opoku Amankwa.”

AFAG in welcoming the president’s decision to remove the three top EC officials from office further called on government to publish the committee’s full report.

This according to AFAG will “give confidence in the wisdom of the President’s decision to fire, and above all to establish the basis of the sack.”

C’ttee findings on EC officials will be forwarded to AG – Hamid

The Minister of Information, Mustapha Hamid, had assured that government will forward the adverse findings made against the immediate past Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Charlotte Osei and her two former deputies to the Attorney General for possible prosecution.

“It is the Attorney General who is basically in charge of legal matters, prosecutions and issues like that. So the Attorney General will study the report by herself and I’m sure in due course she will report to the Ghanaian people on the series of measures that she will take in order to ensure compliance with the recommendations of this committee,” Mustapha Hamid said at a press conference on Friday.

Read AFAG’s full statement below:

PROSECUTE FIRED EC AND DEPUTIES
AFAG welcomes and congratulates the President for the bold decision of sacking Mrs Charlotte Osei and her two deputy commissioners implicated in the Chief Justice’s investigation. This move has been our long-standing call as a result of our position against corrupt public office holders.

Although the electoral commissioner’s posturing before, during and immediately after the elections were questionable, we consider the events leading to this investigation as God-given. This notwithstanding, we commend the boldness to which the EC staff defied all odds and stood up against incompetent management at the electoral commission.

Indeed, the accusation and counter-accusations among the commissioners showed that all wasn’t well with the commission regarding teamwork, decision making and financial management.

It is in this regard that AFAG welcomes the recommendation of the court’s committee and the decision to sack by the president. The rule of law has been upheld without considerations to who is before the judge.

This notwithstanding, AFAG demands from the government;

1. To make public the full report of the Chief Justice’s investigation as a matter of transparency, to give confidence in the wisdom of the President’s decision to fire, and above all to establish the basis of the sack.

2. Prosecute the EC Chair and the deputies if the allegations and counter allegations of corruption among them were established by the CJ’s committee.

If Indeed there is a basis to sack based on financial irregularities as we were made to know by the deputy EC commissioners, then we will want the courts to justify or otherwise make a declaration in this regard.

Simply put we want all persons implicated in any act of corruption to face the law. This will serve as a deterrent to other public office holders. AFAG has taken the position that if “corrupt” public officials are merely fired for corruption, it serves no purpose to jail petty thieves.

Signed
AFAG LEADERSHIP

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citinewsroom.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

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