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Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine, has defended his decision to discontinue the high-profile trial of Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, asserting that the case was driven by political victimisation rather than legal merit.
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Dr. Ayine stated that his office had conducted a thorough reassessment of the case and found no basis for its continuation.
“I believed then, and still believe now, that Hon. Ato Forson was a victim of a political witch hunt and that he has no case to answer in this trial,” he declared.
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Dr. Ayine further emphasised that the Court of Appeal had already vindicated this position by ruling that the trial court erred in calling upon Dr. Ato Forson and his co-accused, businessman Richard Jakpa, to mount a defence.
“When the then Attorney General vowed to file an appeal and actually went ahead to do so, I took the view that it was done to save face and that there was not a scintilla of merit to his appeal. Indeed, the appeal was, to say the least, incompetent,” he added.
Two weeks ago, the Attorney General formally dropped all charges against Dr. Ato Forson and Richard Jakpa in the controversial ambulance procurement trial. This followed a ruling by the Court of Appeal, which acquitted and discharged both men.
Dr. Ato Forson and Richard Jakpa had been accused of causing a financial loss of €2.37 million to the state in a 2014–2016 deal to procure 200 ambulances.
At the time, Dr. Ato Forson served as Deputy Finance Minister, while Mr. Jakpa acted as a local representative for Dubai-based Big Sea General Trading Limited, the company contracted to supply the ambulances.
The prosecution had argued that Dr. Ato Forson authorised the issuance of letters of credit for the purchase of the vehicles, which were later deemed “not fit for purpose.” However, the defence maintained that the transaction followed due process and that the accusations were politically motivated.
The case had long been a point of contention between the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the former administration, with critics arguing that the prosecution of Dr. Ato Forson was an attempt to silence a key political figure.
Dr. Ayine’s decision to drop the case has sparked debate, with opposition supporters hailing it as justice served, while critics argue that it sets a dangerous precedent for accountability in government.
Nonetheless, the Attorney General remains firm in his stance, reiterating that his office operates independently and bases its decisions solely on legal grounds, free from political interference.
With the case officially closed, Dr. Ato Forson can now fully focus on his role as finance minister, but the political reverberations of the saga are far from over.
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