New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Gushegu, Alhassan Sulemana Tampuli, has raised concerns about what he describes as the growing “weaponisation” of bail by state investigative bodies, particularly the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO).
Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile on Saturday, November 22, the MP said recent developments indicate that bail, meant to protect the rights of suspects, is increasingly being used as a tool of oppression.
“It appears that bail is now more or less being weaponised — used as a weapon to oppress suspects or persons of interest with some very wondrous bail terms and conditions,” Mr Tampuli said.
He noted that the situation is a sharp departure from what existed in previous years.
According to him, several investigative bodies, including the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), EOCO, the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), and the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), now handle high-profile cases, but EOCO has attracted the most public criticism over harsh bail conditions.
He stressed that, unlike EOCO, the OSP rarely demands detention of suspects.
“OSP, you will hardly find any instance where OSP will insist that somebody must be held in custody,” he said, citing the example of broadcaster Paul Adom-Otchere, who, despite being high-profile, did not face onerous bail terms.
The Deputy Ranking Member of the Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee of Parliament questioned why self-recognisance bail, commonly used in the past, appears to have faded away.
“We were in this country for the eight years that NPP was in power. Can you mention one person who was held in custody because he couldn’t meet any bail conditions?” he asked.
He further criticised the justification that bail amounts must match alleged financial losses in a case, arguing that some individuals are being detained even when their cases have nothing to do with missing funds.
“There are people who have been held in custody unrelated to any loss of money. Why are you still holding them in custody? What are you trying to recover from them?” he questioned.
Mr Tampuli called for urgent reforms to create “a realigned and properly regulated environment” for granting bail, stating that current practices undermine justice and violate the rights of suspects.
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