Mohammed Tahiru Nambe, the newly appointed Upper East Regional Legal Officer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has expressed gratitude for the role and pledged to serve the party with diligence, describing the appointment as both a surprise and a privilege.
Speaking on the Bluewaves Breakfast Show, Nambe said the region has many qualified lawyers and viewed his selection as recognition of his previous legal work for the party. “I must say it was also gratifying in the sense that you have a feeling that whatever you are doing, there is a third eye looking up to you… I never thought this deal would come,” he stated.
He thanked Regional Chairman “Figo” and the entire regional executive committee for the confidence reposed in him. “I shall not fail them. We shall work hard to redeem our image,” Nambe promised.
On balancing his private legal practice with the new party role, Nambe said he anticipates no major difficulty. He noted that he has long represented party members and the NPP itself in court when required. “The party is not always in court. But my job as the legal officer is that I would advise as and when the need arises. I would go to court to defend or to initiate legal or other actions against other persons that are… committing offense against the party,” he explained. “It’s a job that I’ve been doing, and I think I do it excellently.”
Nambe also offered a detailed legal analysis of the recent controversy surrounding the arrest of an NPP Member of Parliament by officials of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO). He grounded his comments in the 1992 Constitution of Ghana and relevant statutes.
Citing Article 177, which grants parliamentarians immunity from civil and criminal proceedings while travelling to or from Parliament, he asked: “Was the member of Parliament going to Parliament or was he from Parliament?”
He further referenced the Criminal Procedure Act, Act 30, and the EOCO Act, Act 804 of 2010. Section 10 of Act 30 sets out conditions for warrantless arrests by police officers, such as when an offence is committed in an officer’s presence or when an officer is obstructed in the execution of duty. Nambe observed that the vast majority of arrests in Ghana, including in the Upper East Region, are made without warrants.
Under the EOCO Act, Section 18 empowers the Director and deputies to effect arrests, while Section 19 requires officials to properly identify themselves. “The lady poses to be the EOCO official. And she was asked, ‘What identifies you as the EOCO official?’ And she was not able to identify herself as an EOCO official. That’s where the problem is,” Nambe argued.
In his view, the arrest of the MP was not lawful. “You don’t just subject yourself to any other person you don’t know who claims this,” he said, stressing the importance of citizens knowing their rights and officials strictly following legal procedures.
By Gayheart Abraham
Source:Mybluewavesonlinecom|Maurice Duncan|Bolgatanga
