Professor of Political Science and Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Shippers Authority (GSA), Prof. Ransford Gyampo, has said that misguided public support and what he described as incompetent legal advice may have contributed significantly to the legal difficulties facing former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta.

Mr Ofori-Atta remains in federal custody in a case that now hinges on extradition evidence and strict legal deadlines, developments that have attracted widespread public and political attention.

Speaking on JoyNews’s Newsfile programme on Saturday, January 24, Prof. Gyampo rejected suggestions that law enforcement authorities had acted inhumanely towards the former finance minister.

“My view is that given what he has done for Ghana, I don’t think that the law enforcement authorities would have been inhumane towards him,” he said.

He stressed that, like any other citizen, Mr Ofori-Atta is entitled to due process under the law, including the right to respond to charges and to apply for bail where appropriate.

“He has the right — you may face your charges, you have the right to respond and then if you are given a bail,” Prof. Gyampo noted.

The political scientist further pointed to what he described as a growing consensus among Ghana’s political and legal elite that bail conditions should be fair and not punitive.

“Recently, there is a certain elite consensus among all of us that bail conditions cannot be arbitrary. If you give it and it is too much, we can all jump in to say that it be reduced, it be varied and all that,” he said.

However, Prof. Gyampo argued that the current situation had been aggravated by uncritical and politically motivated public defence of actions he suggested were indefensible, as well as flawed legal strategy.

“But I think what is happening, or what has caused the problem, is some form of sycophantic public support for what is wrong and, in my view, also certain incompetent legal advice that has coalesced to push the man to where he is,” he stated.

According to him, such factors may have narrowed the former minister’s legal options and complicated efforts to manage the case more effectively.

While refraining from commenting directly on the substance of the allegations, Prof. Gyampo emphasised the need for respect for due process and cautioned against actions or commentary that could undermine public confidence in the justice system.