Corrupt public officials including criminals would be dealt with equally, fairly and in accordance with the constitution without favour or affection, Mr Martin Amidu, Minister of Attorney General and Justice has warned.
The Attorney General and Minister of Justice, who sounded the warning in an interview with the Ghana News Agency at the weekend, stressed that ”crime is crime and must be dealt with, without fear or favour, affection or ill will”.
He assured Ghanaians that there would be no consideration for gender, race, religion, political affiliation, tribe or ethnic origin in the discharge of responsibilities in his new assigned Ministry.
“Ghanaian can be rest assured that there will be no consideration of gender, race, religion, political affiliation, tribe or ethnic origin in the discharge of my responsibilities in the Ministry of Justice.
“I am not a Minister of Injustice. The Office of the Attorney-General is guided by procedural rules of conduct and ethics and those are going to guide me,” he said.
He said he was going to occupy an office, which professional lawyers, wish to see as an impartial defender of the rights of both the State and the private individual in criminal justice administration.
“My decisions can be reviewed by my successors. What I will want to leave behind are criminal case files, which when reviewed in future by my successors or researchers, it might be said that my decisions were supportable by the evidential facts on the dockets,” Mr Amidu said.
He said as a lawyer with long service experience coupled with his ten years of experience as a professional conflict resolution practitioner, he would bring to bear a positive change in the Ministry.
“The law reports testify to my energy and experience even then. What I pray for is for me to be lucky to meet younger and enthusiastic lawyers who would support me the same way I supported those Attorneys-General.
Success is always a collaborative work and not any individuals”, Mr Amidu said.
He said, “I campaigned for the President (President Mills) because I accepted his leadership and wisdom to achieve the party’s agenda for the good of all Ghanaians. In this regard, my comfort or otherwise with the decision to reassign me is not an issue. The important thing is what contributions I can make in that Ministry to help the President to achieve his vision of a Better Ghana.”
Speaking on his achievements at his former Ministry, the Ministry of Interior, Mr Amidu said, he achieved his mandate of maintaining law, order, internal security, and peace.
“If you are not satisfied with this answer, then, let me answer you in another way. As a matter of principle I do not mark my own scripts. I trust history to judge the Ministry and my tenure there. I hope we will be judged favourably”.