Political analyst and former New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential aspirant Dr. Arthur Kennedy has declared that the NPP does not deserve another opportunity to govern Ghana.
He described the party as unremorseful and warned that its return to power could undermine public confidence in the country’s justice system.
Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile, Dr. Kennedy made the remarks while discussing the influence of political power on Ghana’s legal system and the ongoing debate over plea bargaining in high-profile criminal cases.
Dr Kennedy’s comments came after he suggested that politically connected individuals often benefit when governments change, prompting the programme host, Samson Lardi, to ask whether he was effectively saying the NPP should not return to office.
“Well, that is a whole new show. The NPP, as it is framed now, as it is constituted now, unrepentant as it is, does not deserve to return to power, but that is a different show.”
Earlier in the discussion, Dr. Kennedy had warned that changes in political power can influence the trajectory of high-profile criminal prosecutions.
“The ultimate example is that when government changes, you know, if Wontumi or any of these other people about whom we are making noises, regarding ORAL and others, if God forbid 2028 we find out that NPP is in power, most of their problems will go away regardless of whether they are guilty or not.”
His remarks were made in the context of the reported plea bargain discussions involving Ashanti Regional NPP Chairman Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi.
Dr. Kennedy argued that while plea bargaining is a legitimate legal tool, it should not create the perception that influential people can evade justice.
“Criminal punitive fines must be on the table. However, politics looms large in the background, because when you think of a situation where the government itself announced earlier that it is up to the discretion of the Attorney General to accept some of these plea deals, where people win cases in court, and they thank the Asantehene and the President instead of thanking the judiciary, and where we randomly file nolle prosequi with lack of accountability about why they were filed, and people got freed, the public has reason to be concerned about whether our legal system is tiered, one for the powerful or one for the weak.”
He said Ghana’s justice system must demonstrate that politically connected individuals are held to the same standards as ordinary citizens convicted of less serious offences.
“I think that we should be guided by the kind of retribution faced by cassava and fowl thieves, and that big people ought not to get away just because they are big and connected people.”
Responding to a question about whether plea bargaining is a legal right available to every accused person, Dr. Kennedy acknowledged that access to justice in Ghana is often shaped by one’s ability to afford legal representation.
“Our justice system obviously depends on your ability to hire counsel. I’m just saying that we need to be careful that in the end, when one looks, even innocently, we will not seem to be operating a system where if you are powerful and connected enough, you can loot the state and then dribble and get away with it.”
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Source: Myjoyonline.com
