OSP has overreached his bounds; I won’t advise Ofori-Atta to return – Kofi Bentil – Nsemkeka
Kofi Bentil, Vice President of policy think tank IMANI Africa, says he would not advise former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta to return to Ghana, following what he describes as unconstitutional actions by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP).
Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile programme on Saturday, 7th June, Mr Bentil criticised the OSP’s decision to declare Mr Ofori-Atta wanted, arguing that it exceeds the constitutional limits of the office.
“It is not constitutional for any institution to declare a person wanted because they did not submit themselves to investigation,” he asserted.
Mr Ofori-Atta was declared wanted on 2 June after failing to meet a deadline to appear before the OSP.
The office, led by Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng, indicated that Ofori-Atta’s legal team failed to substantiate his health condition with adequate medical documentation, despite citing cancer as the reason for his absence.
The OSP has since escalated the matter, listing Mr Ofori-Atta on INTERPOL’s Red Notice database.
The listing describes him as a 65-year-old Ghanaian male born in Accra on 7 November 1959, with black hair and eyes, standing at 1.7 metres tall and fluent in English and Twi.