Manhyia South MP and lawyer Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah says the state’s attempt to arrest him within the premises of the Accra High Court has set a dangerous precedent that must not be repeated.
According to him, the court represents the authority of the judiciary and state agencies should exercise caution when seeking to arrest lawyers within court premises while they are performing their professional duties.
Speaking on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem, Mr Baffour Awuah said he believes he is the first lawyer to have experienced such an attempt in Ghana’s history.
“It has never happened in our history that the government has attempted to arrest a lawyer in court. The court represents judicial authority, and so, in the strict sense of separation of powers, the state should not cross the precinct of the court to arrest a lawyer.”
The comments follow a September 23 incident at the Accra High Court, where Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) officials attempted to take Mr Baffour Awuah into custody after he had appeared in court as a lawyer representing a client.
The incident resulted in a confrontation, with the Ghana Bar Association subsequently condemning the attempted arrest.
Mr Baffour Awuah later described the attempted arrest as unlawful and questioned the manner in which the EOCO official approached him.
EOCO subsequently obtained a High Court warrant authorising his arrest after telling the court it had exhausted reasonable means of securing his attendance for questioning.
The Manhyia South MP eventually reported himself to EOCO on October 1 and was placed under arrest while cooperating with investigators.
The investigation relates to alleged unauthorised financial transactions involving SIC Life Savings and Loans, with allegations including financial loss and money laundering. He has since been charged and pleaded not guilty.
Reflecting on the incident, Mr Baffour Awuah said his own experience should not become a justification for similar treatment of others.
“I am the first to suffer that; the first MP to be kept in custody for two days after turning myself in. I may have suffered it, but I won’t say it should be done to someone else because we are setting a bad precedent,” he said.
He said the broader concern should be about protecting the institutional boundaries between the arms of government and maintaining public confidence in the justice system.
“I may have suffered it but I won’t say it should be done to someone else because we are setting a bad precedent,” he stressed.
Mr Baffour Awuah also linked the issue to the broader economic environment, arguing that Ghana needs an environment in which citizens and businesses can thrive if the country is to make meaningful progress.
“In building and developing the country, we need people who will use their sweat and blood to toil for the nation,” he said.
“But we are creating an environment where people are filled with pain and bitterness. Our businessmen are not even progressing, which is not good.”
He called for an end to what he considers an unhealthy precedent in the handling of arrests involving lawyers within court premises.
“We must put a stop to this; if not, the consequences will not be good for us in future. God will help us,” he said.
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