The Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, has accused Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin of violating procurement laws by hiring Thaddeus Sory as a lawyer for the Parliamentary Service without the necessary approvals.
A letter from the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) recently emerged, rejecting a request to single-source Sory@Law, Thaddeus Sory’s firm, as Parliament’s solicitor on retainer.
Speaking to JoyNews’ Kwaku Asante following Wednesday’s Supreme Court hearing, Mr Dame labelled the Speaker’s actions as unlawful.
“It was a matter that was properly brought up because as I indicated to the court, the procurement of all goods, works and services of any person with public funds must be with the approval of the public procurement authority. So it’s a matter that is very important and indeed we raised it,” he said.
Mr Dame argued that constitutional cases should not involve personal interests and emphasised that the Speaker’s role does not entitle him to legal representation on a personal basis.
“As I said, in the constitutional case, there’s nothing like a person of an interest. What interest does the Speaker of Parliament have in the interpretation of the Constitution? So there’s no interest, no personal interest of the Speaker of Parliament, and that’s the point that I sought to make.”
Mr Dame argued that in constitutional cases, the primary concern is the true and accurate interpretation of the relevant constitutional provisions, rather than any individual’s personal interest.
He emphasised that it is, in fact, the Supreme Court’s proper interpretation of the Constitution that holds the utmost importance.
“As I said, I have always tolerated the Speaker of Parliament and his representation, even though I know it’s not lawful. And of course, it is not an attempt to prevent the Speaker from having a representation. If the Speaker wants to have a lawyer, the Speaker must procure the lawyer lawfully.”
The A-G stated that compliance with procurement laws is required at all levels, noting that his own office, as well as former Chief Justices, sought PPA approval for external legal services.
“The Attorney-General, even when he’s seeking the service of a lawyer to represent the government in cases outside the country, in foreign courts, goes through PPA approval all the time. Even the Chief Justice, the former Chief Justice, who was using the services of Thaddeus Sory had to go to PPA approval,” Mr Dame said.
He further argued that the Speaker’s actions breach the PPA Act, stating, “A breach of the PPA Act constitutes a crime and my contention is that you cannot use a crime to defend a clear, unconstitutional action by yours. So, indeed, you are engaged in an unconstitutional action, and you are using the commission of a crime to further that unconstitutionality, that is wrong.”
When asked why he did not raise the issue further in court, he explained, “That’s up to the courts. I do not quarrel with the court at all when the court decides to either defer a ruling or maybe decide not to rule on it. And, of course, all rights are also reserved for us to take it up further.
