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President Akufo-Addo addressing the opening session of the annual general conference of the Ghana Bar Association in Sunyani
President Akufo-Addo addressing the opening session of the annual general conference of the Ghana Bar Association in Sunyani

Help fight corruption, galamsey – Akufo-Addo tells Bench, Bar

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has called for the formation of a grand alliance among the Executive, the Bench and the Bar to fight the scourge of illegal mining and corruption in the supreme interest of the country.

 “We all know that if we do not get a hand on corruption, we will not be able to develop our nation….if we do not win the fight against environmental hazards, especially the battle against the galamsey phenomenon, we will have no nation to speak of.

“I am faithfully committed, as the President of the Republic, to doing all in my power to confront these twin challenges,” he said.

President Akufo-Addo made the call when he addressed the opening session of the 2017/2018 annual general conference of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) which is currently underway in Sunyani.

The five-day conference, being attended by about 1,500 members of the association, is being held on the theme: “Saving the future generation from the scourge of corruption and environmental hazards -The role of the legal profession”.

Office of Special Prosecutor

President Akufo-Addo said he needed the support of the Bar towards the establishment of the Office of the Special Prosecutor to assist in the fight against corruption.

He explained that the Office of the Special Prosecutor was an attempt by the government to take politics out of the prosecution of present and past office holders, which could be deemed as witch-hunting, and asked for the support of the Bar for the realisation of that objective.

The President said the government had done its homework on the constitutionality of the office before putting the issue before Ghanaians.

He stated that the success or otherwise of the Office of the Special Prosecutor would depend on members of the Bar, since they would provide personnel with genuine commitment and integrity to fight corruption.

“In the same vein, the Executive needs the cooperation of the Bench and the Bar …. to ensure the speedy prosecution of those collectively involved in the galamsey activities,” he added.

He gave an assurance that he was going to provide exemplary leadership in the fight against corruption.

President Akufo-Addo said within the constraints of the country, the government did what it could to improve on the remuneration of members of the Judiciary, while providing the necessary logistics and tools to enhance their work.

President AKufo-Addo with the leadership of the Ghana Bar Association

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Attorney-General

For her part, the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Ms Gloria Afua Akuffo, said no single institution or person could win the fight against corruption alone.

“Fighting corruption, therefore, requires a firm partnership between the government and the public sector, on the one hand, and civic society, the private sector, professional associations and faith-based organisations, on the other.

To that end, she said she was in the process of establishing an ad hoc team of prosecutors for the expeditious trial of illegal mining suspects.

“It is my expectation that members of the Bar in private practice will rise up to the call when the invitation is extended,” she said, and called on the Judiciary to impose the necessary deterrent punishment on offenders.

“The GBA cannot ignore the call to the fight. That is the only way we can save the future generation from the twin scourges of corruption and environmental degradation,” Ms Akuffo said.

Bench and Bar relationship

In his address, the President of the GBA, Mr Benson Nutsukpui, called on both the Bench and the Bar to work harmoniously in an atmosphere of mutual respect and cooperation to enhance justice delivery.

He said given the conflicting roles of judges and lawyers, Bench-Bar relations could be tensed and acrimonious, with each  having its catalogue of complaints against the other.

Mr Nutsukpui said it was time both the Bench and the Bar returned to the old tradition of the profession which encouraged elevation to the superior bench based on the recommendation of one’s peers on the basis of integrity, knowledge of the law, industry, sartorial elegance and comportment.

Attack on Kenyan Judiciary

He condemned the threats and attacks on the judges of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Kenya after the delivery of their verdict in the election petition which went before it recently, explaining that such threats and attacks represented an affront to the rule of law in any democracy.

“The GBA joins its colleagues of the Kenya Law Association to condemn all unwarranted, scurrilous and baseless attacks on the members of the Kenyan Supreme Court for discharging the duties of their judicial offices and call on all political actors in Kenya to exercise maturity and decorum in their utterances,” he said.

Present at the opening ceremony were the Chief Justice, Ms Justice Sophia A.B. Akuffo; the Minister of Railways Development, Mr Joe Ghartey, and the Brong Ahafo Regional Minister, Mr Kwaku Asomah-Cheremeh.

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