I knew 'diabolic' Dr. Ayine's case against Amidu was 'unreasonable' – Maurice Ampaw

Private legal practitioner, Maurice Ampaw says he foresaw Dr. Dominic Akuritinga Ayine’s case against the Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu as ‘unreasonable’, but was awaiting for the final verdict from the law court.

He described Dr. Ayine as a “diabolic man” whose interest was to disrupt Amidu’s duties with his lawsuit.

“Look at the number of years this case has been pending in court. He just wasted our time. After reading his argument, I knew very well he doesn’t have a case. He just wanted to be diabolic,” he said in an interview with NEAT FM’s morning show ‘Ghana Montie’.

Supreme Court okays Martin Amidu's appointment

The Supreme Court on Wednesday, May 13, 2020, declared that Mr. Martin A.B.K Amidu is eligible to be the Special Prosecutor, as his appointment did not contravene the 1992 Constitution.

In a 5-2 majority decision, the court presided over by the Chief Justice, Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah, dismissed a suit claiming that Mr. Amidu was ineligible to be the Special Prosecutor because he was 66 at the time of his appointment and, therefore, his appointment was unconstitutional.

The court did not give its reasons for dismissing the suit but said the reasons would be filed at the court’s registry.

However, per the Supreme Court’s decision, the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) is not caught by the retiring age of 60, as applicable in the public service.

Dr. Ayine’s case

The suit was filed by Dr. Dominic Akuritinga Ayine, a former Deputy Attorney-General and National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for Bolgatanga East.

Mr. Amidu was nominated by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as Special Prosecutor on January 11, 2018, and was subsequently approved by Parliament.

Dr. Ayine challenged the appointment by invoking the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court to interpret the Constitution.

He argued that the whole process, including the nomination and approval of Mr. Amidu as Special Prosecutor, was unconstitutional.