By Edmound Tetteh
The High Court in Accra has rejected a preliminary objection by NDC’s Head of Legal Affairs, Edudzi Tamekloe, that the Police cannot institute injunction applications against protests without authorization from the Attorney-General.
Mr. Tamekloe said, according to Section 9(1) of the State Proceedings Act, it is only the Attorney-General or an officer authorized by him that can institute civil proceedings in the name of the Republic.
He said the Police, by instituting the action in the name of the Republic, had acted without the necessary authorization anticipated by the state proceedings ACT. Mr. Tamakloe said the Police cannot rely on the A-G’s permission to prosecute criminal cases in the name of the Republic.
But, the Court dismissed the position on grounds that the Law Officers Act, 1972 (N.R.C.D. 279,) allows for other public officers to assist the AG in the exercise of his mandate. The Presiding Judge, Justice Edward Twum noted that since Section 56 of the Criminal and Other Offences Act deals with the appointment of Public Prosecutors by the Attorney General through the executive instrument, “even if the application is instituted for and on behalf of the Republic, the Court is of the considered view that the applicant could institute the action under Section 1(1)(C) and Section 1(2) of the Law Officers ACT.” The court, however, determined that on the face of the documents, the application was intended to be instituted in the name of the Inspector General of Police and not in the name of the Republic.
The Court dismissed the preliminary legal objection and granted leave to applicants, in this case the Police, to amend the title of the application and serve on the respondents within seven days. Meanwhile, the Minority in Parliament says it will go ahead with its protest on Tuesday, September 12, 2023 though the court has not yet heard the injunction application against the protest, which was originally scheduled for September 5, 2023.