SELECTIVE JUSTICE IN AKONTA MINING CASE, MINORITY DEMANDS EQUAL APPLICATION OF LAW

The Parliamentary Minority Caucus has accused the government of applying the law selectively, following the High Court’s judgment in the case of _The Republic v. Bernard Antwi-Boasiako and Akonta Limited_.

Reading a statement to the media in Parliament on Tuesday, Deputy Minority Leader Hon. Patricia Appiagyei said the “machinery of the state moves fastest and lands hardest” when the target is the political opposition.

“The Minority Caucus has taken note of the judgment delivered by the High Court in the case of _The Republic v. Bernard Antwi-Boasiako and Akonta Limited_,” she stated.

According to Hon. Appiagyei, the issue goes beyond one prosecution. She argued that democracy depends on the confidence of the losing side that the rules are clear and applied equally.

“If this government is serious about ending selective justice, then it must prosecute its own with equal vigour,” she said. “When the law is applied only when convenient, then no citizen’s rights are secure, no matter which party they belong to. Public trust in institutions that must outlive any single administration is eroded.”

The Minority Caucus made four specific calls following the judgment:

1.  On the Attorney-General: Publish the state’s enforcement record on illegal mining across the political spectrum to demonstrate that the law is being applied without fear or favour.
2.  On the Court of Appeal: Scrutinise issues raised in the case, including the denial of counsel, the refusal to refer, and matters around bail, “with equal and unflinching scrutiny.”
3.  On the Judiciary: Reaffirm the threshold for constitutional referral, with express regard to the Supreme Court’s decision in the _Zenator_ case.
4.  On Ghanaians: Insist that “the standards which cleared Mr. Tsikata’s name in 2006 be demanded with equal conviction today.”

“Justice must not only be done. It must be seen to be done, and it must be done equally,” Hon. Appiagyei concluded.