A discussion on Joy FM’s Newsfile has sparked fresh debate about the existence and purpose of a WhatsApp platform reportedly hosting officials from key state accountability institutions, the Supreme Court representative, civil society actors, and prominent journalists.
The matter became a point of contention after private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu had questioned the independence of the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), suggesting that the office was susceptible to external interpretations of its actions.
But the host of Newsfile and private legal practitioner Samson Lardy Anyenini questioned the basis for what he described as selective trust in information about the OSP.
“In your office, who says anything?” he asked. “And I had asked Martin Kpebu the same question: why does he seem to believe anything anybody tells him about the office, but he’s unwilling to take what the office tells him? He’s giving you the reason.”
Confirmation
Director of Research, Communications, and Strategy at the OSP, Sammy Darko, offered further clarification, revealing that investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni had previously raised concerns about the issue on the same WhatsApp platform.
“The first time I had an encounter with Manasseh Azure over this… there is a government WhatsApp group that we are on, and he brought this issue up. He was answered. In fact, as he said, he’s had the opportunity to see firsthand some of the work that we have done. But I’ll take it one by one,” Darko explained.
Inclusion Defence
Confronted about why he, as a journalist and legal practitioner, would be on a platform created by the government and shared with accountability institutions, Anyenini strongly rejected the impression that the group was a tool for state influence.
“Let’s clarify first — it’s not a government WhatsApp group,” he insisted. “People may get the wrong impression. It is a WhatsApp group of independent minds: CSO leaders and people like you, because of your offices — the key accountability institutions who are also there. OSP, CHRAJ, Auditor-General. Even the Supreme Court has a representation because we have been given a job to do, which is not influenced by the state.”
According to him, the platform’s purpose is to coordinate contributions to national accountability initiatives, not to control or influence independent actors. He was, however, not clear about who had given them the watchdog role he spoke about, or where the platform’s members derive their mandate from.
Additional explanation
However, Darko later offered a slightly different clarification, noting that the group was indeed set up as part of a government-led anti-corruption reform initiative.
“The point I’m making is that the government creates it because we are charting a new path on our corruption policy and ethics,” Darko further stated.
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