By Prince Acquah
Cape Coast, April 17, GNA – The Office of the Attorney-General and Ministry of Justice in the Central Region has appealed for a budget to carry out their prosecutorial duties expeditiously and effectively.
The budget would cover expenses including the cost of transportation for witnesses, accommodation for some witnesses and allowances for expert witnesses like pathologists.
Mr Vincent Aboagye Nyinaku, the Regional Head of the Office, said it had become a routine for prosecutors to finance some of those expenses from their own pockets, a situation which adversely affected their ability to prosecute cases effectively.
He made the appeal at the official opening of this year’s criminal assizes at the Cape Coast Court Complex.
Criminal assizes are the special sessions of the High Court to try indictable offences such as murder, rape, armed robbery and treason.
Emphasising the critical role of the Attorney-General’s Office in the delivery of criminal justice, he stressed the need for them to be better resourced to ensure the speedy disposal of cases through speedy trials as directed by the Chief Justice.
“No one or entity stands to benefit more than my office if cases are expeditiously tried. It will clear the backlog of cases our office is to prosecute which keep increasing.
For this criminal session, he noted that his office had put 16 cases before the court most of which were outright murder cases and committed to completing all of them before the end of the legal year.
Mr Nyinaku underscored the role of criminal justice in every society, indicating that the country would be thrown into a state of total chaos and anarchy without it.
He thus entreated all stakeholders to embrace and help to sustain and make it stronger.
As representatives of the society, he implored the jurors to be fair in their work, stressing that an accused person could only be guilty when strong evidence had been led against them.
“Eschew any act of corruption in this duty given to you,” he advised.
Mrs Juliana Amono-Niezer, the Supervising High Court Judge of the Central Region, implored all actors in the judicial system, particularly judges and jurors to approach
criminal cases with diligence, integrity and unwavering commitment to fairness and justice.
She said such cases involved the lives, liberty and the wellbeing of individuals as well as the peace and security of society.
“I have no doubt that through our collective efforts guided by the principles of law, and driven by shared commitment to justice, these criminal assizes will be conducted with efficiency, fairness and a profound respect for the rights of all,” she added.
GNA
AT/GRB