Isaac Wilberforce Mensah, the spokesperson for the Office of the Attorney-General, has asked Franklin Cudjoe of IMANI Africa, to stop peddling falsehoods about Attorney-General Godfred Yeboah Dame and be bold to apologise for making false claims against the AG.

This comes after Franklin Cudjoe made a social media post, accusing the AG of giving divisive advice to President Nana Akufo-Addo when it comes to the liberties of persons the government does not like such as Domelevo, Charlotte Osei, James Quayson, Martin Amidu among others.

The AG’s office took strong exception to the accusation and demanded a retraction and an apology for the false claims.

Wilberforce Mensah accused the IMANI CEO of trying to denigrate the AG, especially because records show that Godfred Dame was not Attorney-General in all the instances and cases Franklin Cudjoe cited in his accusation of Dame.

What did Franklin Cudjoe say

Mr. Franklin Cudjoe, the IMANI CEO tweeted on March 23, 2024, that Godfred Yeboah Dame has been “...giving the most illiberal and politically divisive advice to a willing autocratic executive as far as the liberties of persons they disrespect and dislike are concerned.”

In addition to his said post, Mr Cudjoe also cited as evidence of his claims, cases like; “SALL, Domelevo, Charlotte Osei, James Quayson, Martin Amidu, Ato Forson and others he’s yet to discover.”

Initial reaction from AG’s spokesperson

“Let it be clear that the Honourable attorney general, Godfred Dame, has not produced any such advice on ANY of the persons mentioned,” Mr Wilberforce Mensah said in a statement.

“I challenge the author to produce any such advice authored by Honourable Godfred Yeboah Dame.

“Some of the names mentioned are being prosecuted for some offenses that the Office believes are fit on proper charges to be preferred based on the facts,” he added.

On the issue of former Auditor General Daniel Yao Domelovo for instance, the spokesperson said, “Mr. Dame was not even the AG at the time.”

“The bottom line is that no such advice on any of the persons named can be provided because nothing of the sort exists and Mr. Cudjoe evidently got it wrong.

“For his own credibility sake and the credibility of the think tank which he represents he ought to unreservedly retract the comment and accordingly issue an apology,” the statement concluded.

Franklin Cudjoe’s apology

"Reference my last post. I hear AG isn't happy. I hear. Tell him sorry. He should just be a fair Justice Minister. That is all," he tweeted upon receipt of the AG's protest.

AG’s office unhappy with Franklin Cudjoe’s half-hearted apology

Franklin Cudjoe’s apology, or lack of it has not gone down well with the Office of the Attorney-General.

Wilberforce Mensah accused the IMANI CEO of not being man enough to accept that he peddled falsehood when confronted with evidence.

In another write-up sent to GhanaWeb, he said if Cudjoe has no malicious agenda against the AG and Office of Attorney-General, then an apology won’t be so difficult for him to do.

Read his post below

I think Franklin Cudjoe is just embarrassing himself all over. He has dirtied himself with lies and when he is called out on his lies against the Attorney-General, he renders an apology and like a recalcitrant child, he tries to attack again from another angle which also proves to be further falsehood.

In the case of Domelovo (2019/2020)
Charlotte Osei (2017/2018)
Martin Amidu (2020)
SALL (2020 Elections), Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame was NOT the Attorney-General at the time.

In any event, no advice was given by the Attorney-General at that time, Gloria Afua Akuffo, on any of the issues.

After being called out on the lies, he issues an apology in the afternoon of the same day and in the evening throws out another vacuous claim that the A-G should apologize for his “dereliction of duty” in seeking justice for the 30,000 citizens of SALL that were callously prevented from the last Parliamentary elections.

To use words like “dereliction of duty” means first there must be a duty. Of course, with a penchant for attacking without any sound basis and an eagerness to do so, it is understandable that Franklin Cudjoe would forget or ignore to do some basic research. The duties of the Attorney-General are primarily provided for in Article 88 of the 1992 Constitution and they include initiation and conduct of criminal and civil cases on behalf of the State, etc. Matters related to election and creation of constituencies are not a “duty” of the A-G. The Constitution places the mandate squarely and absolutely on the doorstep of the Electoral Commission. In fact, Article 46 states clearly that “Except as provided in this Constitution or in any other law not inconsistent with this Constitution, in the performance of its functions, the Electoral Commission, shall not be subject to the direction or control of any person or authority.”

It can only be for mischief that the CEO of a Think tank Imani was unable to either read or grasp this basic legal framework. The A-G has on two occasions expressed his opinion in Parliament, one in July 2021 and in November 2023 where he disagreed with the position of the EC and proposed two solutions that would allow the people within the SALL area to vote, especially as part of Buem.

Franklin Cudjoe, IMANI, lied, lies, and continues to lie and spread falsehoods about the learned Attorney-General and any further derogatory claim by him in respect of the Attorney-General should be treated with the contempt it deserves. It’s for his own sake and the sake of the institution that he represents that I at this point advising him to stop peddling falsehoods, retract, apologize, and desist from these actions that show a sheer lack of basic research.

The Attorney-General is indeed legendary in that not many Attorneys-General can say with concrete proof that they have saved the state the amount of money this A-G has, and instituted far-reaching reforms of the law in Ghana. Monies of Brobdingnagian proportions.

KOD