Mahama Fully Backs OSP – Government Rejects Secret Plot Allegations

Government spokesperson and Member of Parliament for Abura Asebu-Kwamankese, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, has dismissed claims that the government is secretly working to weaken or abolish the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), insisting President John Mahama remains firmly committed to supporting the institution.

Speaking in an interview, he rejected suggestions of any coordinated effort within government to dismantle the anti-corruption office.

“Absolutely not,” he said when asked whether there were plans to scrap the OSP.

According to him, President John Mahama has previously demonstrated strong backing for the institution, including intervening to halt earlier attempts to abolish it.

He explained that a bill had once been introduced in Parliament by the then Majority Leader and Majority Chief Whip seeking to dissolve the OSP.

“The majority at the time had 189 members, and if they had been whipped in line, we would have just approved it, and that would have been the end of the matter,” he noted.

Felix Kwakye Ofosu said the President personally intervened and appealed to party leadership to allow the office to continue operating.

“The president prevailed on the majority leader and the majority chief whip to give the special prosecutor a chance,” he stated.

He further argued that recent legal challenges involving the OSP are being misinterpreted as political interference from government.

According to him, one case involved an accused person challenging the constitutional authority of the Special Prosecutor to prosecute without prior approval from the Attorney General.

He said the court upheld the legal challenge, stressing that judicial interpretation of the constitution should not be politicised.

“So, if the judiciary sees that the Special Prosecutor is acting in violation of the constitution, that should be respected,” he noted.

On another case currently before the Supreme Court, he explained that the Attorney General has been directed to clarify the legal scope of the OSP’s mandate.

He emphasised that the Attorney General is bound to uphold the law as interpreted by the courts.

Felix Kwakye Ofosu maintained that these developments should not be construed as hostility towards the OSP.

“It does not mean that government has anything against the Special Prosecutor,” he stressed.

He added that President Mahama has consistently defended the OSP publicly, even in the face of internal party criticism.

“The Special Prosecutor’s office has the President’s full and absolute backing to do what he has to,” he said.

However, he cautioned that the institution must operate strictly within constitutional limits, noting that any legal gaps identified by the Supreme Court may require future reforms.

“We cannot say that if it is believed by the Supreme Court that the Special Prosecutor’s office is existing unlawfully or acting unlawfully, then we should still allow it to operate. That would fly in the face of the rule of law,” he added.