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Member of Parliament for Adentan constituency, Yaw Buaben Asamoa has challenged Special Prosecutor (SP) Martin Alamisi Burns Kaiser Amidu to tell Ghanaians how he has survived without pay since he was appointed.

Mr. Martin Amidu, yesterday, announced his resignation from his office with immediate effect.

Communicating his decision to the President, he cited lack of operational independence as basis for his resignation.

In a resignation letter to the President, he said; "the one condition upon which I accepted to be nominated as the Special Prosecutor when you invited me to your Office on 10th January 2018 was your firm promise to me that you will respect and ensure same by your Government for my independence and freedom of action as the Special Prosecutor.”

He further cited a traumatic experience he endured after the release of his Agyapa Royalties corruption risk assessment report as one of the reasons for his resignation.

"I should not ordinarily be announcing my resignation to the public myself but the traumatic experience I went through from 20th October 2020 to 2nd November 2020 when I conveyed in a thirteen (13) page letter the conclusions and observations on the analysis of the risk of corruption and anti-corruption assessment on the Report On Agyapa Royalties Limited Transactions and Other Matters Related Thereto to the President as Chairman of the National Security Council cautions against not bringing my resignation as the Special Prosecutor with immediate to the notice of the Ghanaian public and the world . . . 

" . . The events of 12th November 2020 removed the only protection I had from the threats and plans directed at me for undertaking the Agyapa Royalties Limited Transactions anti-corruption assessment report and dictates that I resign as the Special Prosecutor immediately. Fear is the enemy of change and I am prepared from the vacuum created on 12th November 2020 to meet the threats of my demise as the price to pay for serving my country without fear or favour affection or ill will. I acted professionally through out in the discharge of my duties and my conscience is the anchor of my strength to face any consequences." 

Another reason, according to him, is that the government hasn't paid him and his deputy their emoluments and benefits since assuming office two years ago.

“It is essential for me to state for the purpose of the records, and contrary to public perceptions, that my appointment letter was received on 5th February 2020 (almost two (2)-years after my appointment). The copy addressees made no efforts to honour any of the conditions of appointment in terms of emoluments and benefits of the appointment ever since my warrant of appointment was issued on 23rd February 2018 to the date of my letter of resignation. I accepted the offer on 10th January 2018 to be nominated to be Special Prosecutor because Mr. President, and Ghanaians knew I have been an anti-corruption crusader all my life and not an anti-corruption entrepreneur. This explains why I have never put the emoluments and benefits of the Office as central to my commitment and my passion for the establishment of an independent, effective, efficient and impartial anti-corruption Office of the Special Prosecutor before the end of the first term of Mr. President. This has not been possible for several reasons.

“The Deputy Special Prosecutor has also not been paid any emoluments since her appointment, and there is the need to redress that situation for her now that I am out of the way,” he said in a press statement.

Touching on the issue on Tuesday's edition of Peace FM's ''Kokrokoo'', Yaw Buaben Asamoa rebuked Mr. Amidu for blaming the Akufo-Addo government over his resignation.

Yaw Buaben Asamoa held that Mr. Amidu created his own problems, therefore shouldn't drag President Nana Akufo-Addo and his government into the matter. 

According to him, the government hasn't refused Mr. Amidu anything but rather has been of major assistance by making provisions to ensure his office is well resourced.

He disclosed that the government has given Mr. Amidu a nine-storey building at Ridge for his office but he has refused to move in.

He also refuted Mr. Amidu's claims that the government hasn't been paying him for his services.

''Ask him how much money he received in his official account over the past three years . . . He claims he didn't have his appointment letter, what was he sitting there for? . . . Go and check his account right now to see the money he has hoarded in his account . . . He has over 60 million cedis in his account right now as we speak. From 2017, 2018, 2019, he was given money . . . It was put in the account to run the institution,'' he said.

He admonished Mr. Amidu to tell Ghanaians how he has survived within three years since his appointment because what he is saying is not true.

"If his appointment letter had not given to him and he can't fend for himself, how was he surviving for the past three years? . . . Martin has stayed there for three years; epitome of transparency and accountability. He should tell us how he was surviving if he wasn't paid."

Hon. Buaben Asamoa also added that the government hasn't interfered in the SP's work to prosecute persons and entities he finds culpable of a wrongdoing or crime through his investigations. 

"He had the opportunity to proceed to court while the President was perusing the report but he (Martin Amidu) rushed to hand over his resignation. He has done us a disservice. Martin should have stood firm and brought honor to Ghana. He was in a position to prove that his office is independent and this would have shown successive governments not to toy with the office but he has rushed to resign. This is the same thing he did when he was Attorney General; he said some people were beseting him and so resigned.

"The President only applied natural justice. He's perfectly right," he further stressed.