The Attorney-General (A-G) has issued a strong rebuttal to Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson’s recent application to the High Court, emphasizing that no one in Ghana is immune from prosecution.
Dr. Forson, the Minority Leader in Parliament, is currently facing charges of wilfully causing financial loss to the state in the ambulance procurement case.
Dr. Forson had applied for an investigation into the A-G’s conduct, alongside requests for a mistrial, an injunction, and/or a stay of proceedings.
This application followed allegations by Richard Jakpa, the third accused in the case, claiming the A-G had attempted to recruit him to support the prosecution against Dr. Forson.
In the affidavit opposing these requests, the A-G firmly rejected the claims, stating that they lack merit and legal grounding.
The affidavit asserts, “No one has immunity from prosecution under the laws of Ghana,” highlighting the A-G’s commitment to upholding the rule of law without favoritism.
The A-G’s office described Dr. Forson’s application as a strategic move to avoid accountability.
“The instant application is a smokescreen and a veiled attempt by the applicant to abort his legitimate prosecution for actions committed as a public officer which led to the State losing colossal amounts of funds,” the affidavit noted.
The affidavit also stressed that the prosecution has adhered to legal procedures and provided substantial evidence. “The Prosecution has led cogent evidence after painstaking investigations conducted in this case and called credible witnesses who were cross-examined extensively by counsel for the applicant and the other accused persons leading to a prima facie case being held by this Honourable Court to have been duly made against all the accused persons.”
Dr. Ato Forson and Richard Jakpa are accused of causing financial loss to the state through the procurement of defective ambulances worth €2.4 million.
Affidavit in Opposition to … by The Independent Ghana