Attorney General, Dr. Dominic Ayine has justified his decisions to drop criminal cases against National Democratic Congress (NDC) government appointees.
According to him, before taking such decisions, “I consulted widely.”
Dr. Ayine who doubles as the Minister Justice made this known at a Press on the Justification to drop charges in certain criminal prosecutions since taking over as the AG.
“Upon assumption of office as the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, I have taken decisions on certain prosecutions that were instituted by my predecessors, the Honourable Gloria Akuffo and the Honourable Godfred Yeboah Dame. Specifically, I decided to drop the criminal charges laid against certain persons, including those who served in the Government of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and left office in January 2017.
“I did so mindful of the fact that I am serving in a government that came to power on the back of promises of exacting accountability from everyone who has served or is serving in public office. I am here today to account to my fellow citizens for the decisions I have taken so far,” the AG said.
“As Attorney General, I am keenly aware that the prosecutorial authority vested in me under article 88 of the Constitution is discretionary in nature and is subject to the constitutional requirements set out in articles 296 of the Constitution.
“The import of these constitutional requirements is that, in the exercise of my prosecutorial power, I must not only act reasonably and fairly and comply with all the requirements imposed on me by law but also, I must be candid with those whose life and liberty depend on my decisions.
“In addition, the Constitution requires that my decision to prosecute should not be “capricious or biased whether by resentment, prejudice or personal dislike”.
“Before taking any of the decisions I am about to explain, I consulted widely,” he said.
“I had several briefings from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) on each of the cases. Where I disagreed with her, I made my disagreement known to her with reasons.
“I spoke to the defense lawyers in each case and, again, where there were disagreements, as for instance in the banking clean-up cases which I shall deal with shortly, I made my views known to the lawyers.
“I spoke to some of the investigators involved in the cases at hand to get a sense of what they found during their investigations of the cases.
“Finally, I met with and discussed the banking sector cases with at least one of the receivers involved in these cases. I have scheduled a meeting with the second receiver,” he said
