I’m disappointed CHRAJ’s image has been dented - Short

The image of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) has been “dented severely”, an ex-commissioner is lamenting.

The incumbent head of the anti-graft body, Lauretta Vivian Lamptey is reported to have spent over $200, 000 to pay her rent at the plush AU Village in Accra while her official residence was being renovated at a cost of Ghc180,000.

Since August this year, after her AU rent ran out, Lamptey has been staying at a plush hotel in Accra at the cost of $450 a day, until she recently moved out.

The Chief Justice, in response to a petitioner - Richard Nyamah who is seeking the removal of the CHRAJ boss on grounds of abuse of office – has established a prima facie case against the CHRAJ boss.

The first Commissioner of CHRAJ, Emile Francis Short, said: “It is unfortunate this matter has reached this stage.”

Short said he is “really disappointed” because “one would have hoped that it would not come to this stage.”

Asked what he would have done if he were in the shoes of the embattled CHRAJ boss, Short, who was a judge with the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda at Arusha in Tanzania stated: “A word to the wise is enough.”

“The image and credibility of CHRAJ has been dented severely both at national and international levels and there is no doubt these revelations have affected the credibility of CHRAJ,” the longest serving commissioner of CHRAJ told Starr Today host Bernard Nasara Saidu Thursday.

“The kind of revelations [abuse of office] that are in the public domain are not the kind of things you would want to associate with CHRAJ… these are unique functions given to CHRAJ and you don’t want some of these allegations made against the head of CHRAJ.”

Meanwhile, Ms Lamptey has expressed her disappointment in the Chief Justice.

“...Very disappointed by the fact that the Chief Justice has determined that a prima facie case has been established against me, which therefore needs further investigation. I have every respect for our constitutional processes and full confidence in both this process and the recently completed Special Purpose Audit into my accommodation arrangements,” she said in a statement.