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NDC sponsored Dominic Ayine to sue me – Martin Amidu
Martin Amidu said he has passed the statutory age for employment therefore the writ is without merit.
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He said he has passed the statutory age for employment therefore the writ is without merit.
He added that, the NDC officials are seeking to derail efforts being made to fight corruption in the country.
"To the best of my knowledge, information and belief, the Plaintiff [Dominic Ayine] brought this action in his name fronting for the immediate past Government to set at naught the popular wishes of the majority of the Ghanaian electorate who see the President’s acceptance of the nomination of the 2nd Defendant [Martin Amidu] as Special Prosecutor, as being in the national interest to attack the canker of corruption in the body politic," Martin Amidu said in his affidavit.
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Martin Amidu noted: "[Dominic Ayine] was also the immediate past Deputy Minister for Justice for less than four years in the immediate past Government that was overwhelmingly defeated in the last elections on 7th December 2016….the legal firm of Lithur Brew and Company now representing the Plaintiff [Dominic Ayine] are also the lawyers for former President, John Dramani Mahama: the immediate past Attorney General, Marietta Opong Brew-Appiah was and is a member of the law firm as well as Tony Lithur who was also appointed by the former President as Chairman of the lucrative Ghana Airport Company Limited during his tenure of office and also holds himself out as the personal lawyer of the former President."
He said Ayine has refused to "appreciate the fact that Parliament has residual power under the 1992 Constitution to enact sui generis provisions in an Act of Parliament such as Section 13 of Act 959 to deal with matters such as the intractable canker of corruption and corruption related offences expressly proscribed by the Constitution and laws of Ghana by engaging such legal talents on such terms and conditions as would effectively achieve the objective of the Constitutional proscriptions."
Martin Amidu sued
Prior to Martin Amidu's appointment, former deputy Attorney-General, Dr. Dominic Ayine, filed a suit to challenge the nomination.
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He contends that Mr. Amidu, being 66 years of age, is too old to hold public office, under which the Special Prosecutor’s position falls.
He is seeking a declaration that "by a true and proper interpretation of Articles 190(1)(d), 199(1), 199(4), and 295 of the 1992 Constitution, the retirement age of all holders of public office created pursuant to Article(1)(d) is sixty years, anyhow not beyond (65)."
He argued in his writ that, "any other interpretation would result in an unlawful amendment of Article 199 of the Constitution by legislation."
AG defends Amidu
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But the AG has put up a spirited defence in favour of Amidu as the Special Prosecutor.
The Attorney-General (A-G) and Minister of Justice, Ms Gloria Akuffo, has asked the Supreme court to dismiss a suit challenging the nomination of Martin Amidu.
She said the suit is born "out of a narrow, inadequate and literal construction of the scope of application of Chapter 24 of the Constitution".
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