Private Legal Practitioner Martin Kpebu is calling for disciplinary action against a Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) enforcement official over what he describes as a “condemnable” alleged attempt to arrest the Member of Parliament for Manhyia South and Lawyer, Baffour Awuah, at the Accra High Court complex.
Speaking to Isaac Addae on Morning Starr on Starr FM, Mr Kpebu said the conduct of the official must be investigated and dealt with through the appropriate disciplinary process.
He said the alleged attempt to arrest the MP was unacceptable, particularly because there are established procedures for taking legal action against Members of Parliament.
“What this EOCO lady did, a very condemnable act, is something that I’m hoping EOCO boss Raymond Archer would take her through disciplinary proceedings because what she did is condemnable,” he said.
Mr Kpebu said public officers must not assume that their authority gives them the power to arrest people without following the appropriate legal procedures.
“She has to be punished. She has to go through this right procedure so that she will learn sense that the fact that you are appointed a public officer doesn’t mean that you just go about because you have police powers. You arrest anybody anyhow. There are rules,” he said.
He questioned the training and understanding of the official regarding the exercise of arrest powers.
“How was she trained for the job? There are rules. How was she trained?” he asked.
Mr Kpebu further argued that the procedure for taking action against an MP is clearly provided for under the law.
He cited Section 20 of the Parliament Act, Act 300, saying that where criminal or civil proceedings are to be taken against an MP, the appropriate communication should be directed to the Speaker of Parliament.
“The context is that for an MP, you send a letter to Parliament, not just to Parliament, to the Speaker, not anybody, of course, through the Clerk, you need this MP. And that law is called Section 20 of Act 300,” he said.
According to Mr Kpebu, the procedure has existed on Ghana’s statute books for several years and has remained relevant through different constitutional periods.
He said the requirement is clear that any attempt to initiate criminal or civil proceedings against an MP must follow the prescribed parliamentary procedure.
“And it says clearly in Section 20, subsection 2, that if you want to arrest, it’s not just arrest. Anything you want to do in terms of criminal process or civil process against an MP, pass it through the Speaker,” he said.
Mr Kpebu questioned why the procedure was allegedly not followed, arguing that there was no need for authorities to rush the process.
“How difficult is this to do? Why is Ghana coming to an end? No, we’ll be here for some time to come. So why all the rush?” he asked.
He said the MP had reportedly written to the EOCO authorities to correct the procedure, arguing that the communication should have been redirected to the Speaker.
Mr Kpebu also raised concerns about the timing of the alleged attempted arrest, pointing to the fact that it occurred on a day when a lawyer had gone to represent the MP in connection with the matter.
He said he had not seen evidence directly linking EOCO boss Raymond Archer to the alleged conduct and therefore focused his criticism on the official he said was responsible.
“I’ve not seen the hands of Raymond Archer in this. So, unless there’s evidence to show that the boss, Raymond himself, was part of it,” he said.
Mr Kpebu said he would pursue the matter if no disciplinary action was taken.
“I will send a petition in about three months. If nothing is done, she would have to be punished. She has to go through this right procedure,” he said.
“Disciplinary action would be necessary to reinforce the principle that public officers must operate within the limits of their legal authority”. He stressed
Source: Starrfm.com.gh/Pamela Quayson
