Akufo-Addo grants amnesty to 794 prisoners

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has granted amnesty to 794 deserving prisoners in a bid to mitigate the dangers posed by congestion in Ghana's prisons, especially after the onset of the Coronavirus.

This is in accordance with Article 72(1) of the 1992 Constitution, which states that the president shall have the power to grant pardons, reprieves, respites or remissions of punishment or to suspend, remit or commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offence.

Convicts who were pardoned, according to a statement from the Ghana Prisons Service include 772 first offenders, 16 very old prisoners and 4 seriously ill inmates.

2 other inmates also had their death sentences commuted to life imprisonment.

The amnesty comes at a time when many concerns have been raised regarding the safety of prisoners as the country's case count of the Coronavirus is on a fast increase.

Read the full statement below