ASEPA petitions President Mahama for removal of Auditor General from office

The Alliance for Social Equity and Public Accountability (ASEPA) has petitioned President John Dramani Mahama. They want him to remove Auditor General Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu from office.

The petition was filed on Thursday, April 3, at the Jubilee House in Accra. ASEPA accuses Mr. Asiedu of high crimes, misconduct, and abuse of office. They also claim he breached the constitution.

In their statement, ASEPA outlined several charges against Mr. Asiedu. They provided evidence to support these claims and submitted it to the presidency. ASEPA stated, “We have presented evidence that clearly points to these grave accusations.”

The charges include:

1. Failing to comply with Supreme Court directives, a high crime under Article 2(4). ASEPA said this failure is a breach of the Constitution.

2. Conniving with the Audit Service Board to undermine Parliament's authority. This violates Article 187(15) of the Constitution.

3. Unlawfully retaining public funds, violating Section 17(2) of the Audit Service Act. ASEPA called this a betrayal of public trust.

4. Abusing discretionary powers and covering up actions against Article 296 of the Constitution. ASEPA stressed that such abuse cannot go unchecked.

ASEPA noted that removing the Auditor General follows similar procedures as removing the Chief Justice under Article 146 of the Constitution. They emphasized that accountability must be ensured through these constitutional procedures.

This petition formally initiates the removal process under Article 187(13) related to Article 146. It was signed by ASEPA’s Executive Director, Mr Mensah Thompson.

Mr Thompson expressed confidence in a transparent process following constitutional guidelines. He stated, “We are confident that this process will be handled transparently and constitutionally.”

Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu had his contract extended by former President Akufo-Addo in June 2024. This extension came just before his statutory retirement on August 1, 2024.

He was first appointed Auditor-General by Nana Akufo-Addo in September 2021 after acting following Mr Daniel Yaw Domelevo's controversial retirement.