A Human Rights Court has thrown out an application by former Finance Minister, Kenneth Ofori-Atta, who sought to bar the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) from branding him as a fugitive and declaring him “wanted.”
Presiding judge Justice Kwame Amoako ruled on Tuesday that the interlocutory injunction lacked legal merit, stating that Ofori-Atta failed to demonstrate any imminent or irreparable harm that would justify such an order. The court subsequently slapped the former minister with a GHS5,000 cost.
Ofori-Atta had gone to court to challenge the OSP’s declaration made on February 12, 2025, alleging that the public notice breached his constitutional rights to dignity, fair treatment, and administrative justice. He also requested that the OSP be compelled to expunge the declaration from all its social media platforms and be made to compensate him for reputational damage.
But the court found no compelling basis to restrain the Special Prosecutor’s office, noting that the case lacked sufficient urgency or legal grounds to warrant an injunction.
The OSP had declared Ofori-Atta “wanted” after he reportedly failed to honour invitations for questioning in connection with a corruption probe. The public notice was issued amid claims that his absence was stalling investigations.
Ofori-Atta’s legal team argued that he was not evading justice, but rather was undergoing treatment for serious health conditions and preparing for surgery. According to them, his medical situation had been duly communicated to the OSP prior to the public declaration.
Following his return to Ghana and assurances of cooperation, the OSP later removed his name from the wanted list on February 18, 2025.
In his suit, the former minister questioned the legal authority of the Special Prosecutor to issue such public notices, claiming that only the Ghana Police Service, under court sanction, holds that mandate. He insisted that the OSP’s actions violated both domestic laws—specifically the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959) and its operational regulations—as well as international human rights conventions, including the ICCPR and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
Despite these arguments, the court found no basis for the urgent reliefs sought and declined to entertain the matter further, dealing a legal blow to Ofori-Atta’s efforts to challenge the powers of the OSP.
