President John Dramani Mahama has received ten petitions in total to dismiss the Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng, together with the Electoral Comm(EC) Chair, Jean Mensah and her two deputies.
Seven petitions have been submitted against the EC Chair, Jean Mensa, along with her two deputies, Dr. Bossman Eric Asare, responsible for Corporate affairs, and Samuel Tettey, who oversees Operations.
The 3 remaining petitions are seeking the immediate dismissal of the Special Prosecutor (SP), Kissi Agyebeng, who many have criticized in recent times that he has performed little in the fight against corruption.
According to sources, all the petitions have been forwarded to Ghana’s Judicial Head, Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie.
The President, with the recommendation of the Council of State, appoints the EC Chairperson, Deputy Chairmen, and other members of the Executive Committee under Article 70(2) of the Constitution.
The EC leadership is subject to rigorous constitutional processes for removal since their conditions of service are similar to those of justices of the superior courts.
Each deputy serves for the same tenure as a justice of the High Court while the chairperson serves for the same term as a Justice of the Court of Appeal.
The procedure for the dismissal of justices of superior courts and chairs of tribunals is laid forth in Article 146 of the 1992 Constitution. To begin, the matter must be sent to the Chief Justice, who will then ascertain whether there is a prima facie case.
After that, a committee consisting of three justices and two appointed members evaluates the merits of the case and provides recommendations, which the Chief Justice subsequently forwards to the President.
Proceedings take place in camera, allowing the accused officeholder the right to be represented by their legal counsel. Following the proceedings, the committee presents its final recommendations to the President, who is constitutionally obligated to act in accordance with these recommendations.
A similar procedure applies to the Special Prosecutor as outlined in Section 15 of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959).
Following the submission of a petition to the President, it is required that he forwards it to the Chief Justice within a timeframe of seven (7) working days.
Upon establishing a prima facie case, it is necessary to form a committee tasked with conducting investigations within a 90-day timeframe. The committee after its investigations is required to submit its recommendations in full compliance with legal obligations, and the president must act in accordance with these recommendations.
