Deputy Attorney General, Justice Srem-Sai, has strongly defended the government’s decision to discontinue criminal charges against former National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO) Chief Executive, Hanan Abdul-Wahab Aludiba, and his wife, following criticism from former Attorney General, Godfred Yeboah Dame.
The Attorney General’s office on May 5 withdrew all charges against the accused persons in an ongoing criminal trial after investigators reportedly uncovered new evidence linked to the matter.
Reacting to the development, Mr Dame, who currently serves as legal counsel for the former NAFCO boss, described the withdrawal as an abuse of legal process and questioned the manner in which criminal prosecutions are being handled.
But speaking to journalists on Thursday, Dr Srem-Sai dismissed those concerns and maintained that the decision was grounded in established criminal procedure.
“You cannot just come to court when you have fresh evidence in a criminal trial and start throwing around the evidence,” he stated.
“You need to hear from the accused persons regarding the fresh evidence. That will inform your final decision whether you will charge the person or not. But to say that fresh evidence is not available merely because you don’t have it is completely improper and unethical.”
According to the Deputy Attorney General, the discovery of fresh evidence often requires prosecutors to reassess aspects of a case, including conducting further interrogations before determining the next legal step.
He stressed that the withdrawal of the charges should not be interpreted as weakness in the prosecution’s case.
“We are still confident that we have a strong case against the accused person, there is no doubt about that,” Dr Srem-Sai said.
“A fresh evidence means you have discovered something new. Whether that will lead to a new charge or beef up the old case is why we need to interrogate the accused person to hear his side of the story.”
Dr Srem-Sai further argued that the procedure being followed is neither unusual nor unlawful, insisting that investigators and prosecutors are obligated to act on newly discovered material evidence during criminal proceedings.
“It is part of criminal procedure to do that whenever you have fresh evidence. I don’t know why this has become an issue for the former Attorney General, who should know better, to be lamenting across the media, making the same point,” he added.
The latest development deepens the growing public debate surrounding the handling of high-profile prosecutions and the exercise of prosecutorial discretion in Ghana’s justice system.
