KPEBU CALLS FOR INDEPENDENT AG,SPECIAL PROSECUTOR

Private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu has criticised the government’s proposed changes to the appointment and independence of key accountability institutions, arguing that they fail to address the concentration of power in the Presidency.

According to Mr Kpebu, placing the Attorney General outside the position of Minister of State does not guarantee independence if the President continues to appoint the officeholder.

He insisted that both the Attorney General and the Office of the Special Prosecutor must be genuinely independent of the President to ensure effective checks on executive power.

“The Attorney General should not be appointed by the President. OSP should not be appointed by the President,” he said.

Mr Kpebu further called for reforms to the Judicial Council and Council of State, including an end to presidential appointments to those bodies and greater involvement of civil society.

He cited the saying, “One man cannot embrace the baobab tree,” to emphasise the need for broader participation in governance and decision-making.

Mr Kpebu also warned that continued perceptions of unequal access to state resources and opportunities could deepen public frustration.

He referenced a World Bank figure indicating that 56.4 percent of Ghanaians still live in poverty, arguing that citizens could become increasingly intolerant of a system where public officials were perceived to accumulate significant wealth while in office.

He cautioned that the situation could eventually trigger public unrest if meaningful reforms are not pursued.

Mr Kpebu also questioned the effectiveness of existing oversight institutions such as CHRAJ, pointing to their dependence on state funding as a potential limitation when investigating the executive.

He therefore urged a broader restructuring of Ghana’s governance system to create stronger and more independent institutions capable of holding the executive to account.

BY KUKUA SNEAD-MICHAELS