The Deputy Attorney General has revealed that the public spotlight on a few high-profile criminal investigations has created a misleading impression of selective justice, even as many former government officials quietly face legal scrutiny without fanfare.
Dr. Justice Srem Sai, speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on Wednesday, June 11, Dr. Srem Sai challenged the notion that only a handful of cases are being pursued.
He noted that the silence of many arrested or bailed individuals is contributing to the public’s skewed perception.
“I appreciate the demeanour of a lot of the government appointees,” he said.
“Once in a while, you hear that someone has been picked up, or someone has been invited in the media, and then there’s a whole lot of noise.
“But I can tell you, a large number of the persons who have been arrested, now on bail, who are under investigation, are quiet. They will not make any noise about it.”
According to him, several former ministers and officeholders are cooperating with law enforcement discreetly and respectfully. “Some of them believe that the process must be followed,” he said.
“It’s only a few who, once in a while, come in the media, and then people are massing up to go to EOCO. But there are a lot of them who go quietly, do what they are asked to do and live without any noise at all.”
Dr. Srem Sai’s comments came in response to concerns that prosecutions have been selective or politically motivated.
[embedded content]He stressed that not every investigation leads to prosecution, and not every minister presiding over a controversial ministry bears criminal responsibility.
“If you take the Sky Train, for instance,” he said, “former AG and later Railway Minister Joe Ghartey at a point was invited, but he explained his side of the story. When you look at the charge sheet for Sky Train, he’s not on it.”
He maintained that mere association with a project under investigation is not enough to make someone criminally liable.
“The fact that you’re a minister at the time doesn’t mean that you will be criminally liable for anything,” he said.
“There are things that can happen in the ministry which may not be your doing. And so the fact that you are Minister one doesn’t mean that you are guilty whenever there is a crime in the ministry.”
He emphasised that due process takes precedence. “The fact that you have been invited for questioning doesn’t mean that you are guilty,” he said.
“And like I said, the process that I’ve outlined, you would see that you don’t automatically or immediately go to court. You go to court when the evidence shows that the person… or there’s a crime.”
Host Evans Mensah pointed out a recent example that underscored the Deputy Attorney General’s point.
“Just last two weeks,” he said, “Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh himself announced that he’s being investigated by the NIB. He said he’s been going to NIB for a while now. Nobody knew that until he said it publicly.”
Dr. Srem Sai confirmed that the investigations concern multiple projects under Dr. Opoku Prempeh’s tenure as Minister for Education and later Energy.
“A number of things,” he said. “We have projects that were undertaken during his time. And so he would definitely be answering questions in respect of that. You know, the mathematical sets issues — those ones will fall under his ministry.”
But again, he underlined that accountability must be based on evidence, not assumption.
“You will not be prosecuted unless there is evidence that you were complicit in some of the things you undertook,” he said.
DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
- President Commissions 36.5 Million Dollars Hospital In The Tain District
- You Will Not Go Free For Killing An Hard Working MP – Akufo-Addo To MP’s Killer
- I Will Lead You To Victory – Ato Forson Assures NDC Supporters
Visit Our Social Media for More
About Author
