The safest thing is go through Parliament – Kpebu defends Baffour Awuah over EOCO confrontation

Legal practitioner Martin Kpebu has backed Manhyia South MP Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah’s position that Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) should have gone through Parliament before seeking to take him into custody.

Speaking on TV3’s Keypoints in response to questions from host Alfred Ocansey about the September 23 confrontation at the Accra High Court, Kpebu said he saw no basis for interpreting the MP’s position differently.

“Absolutely. He was right. There’s no way you can give any other interpretation to it,” Kpebu said.

His comments came after EOCO confirmed that its officers attempted to arrest Baffour Awuah at the High Court premises over an ongoing investigation.

EOCO said the MP had been invited twice in February 2026 but did not honour the invitations. The agency said the attempted arrest was part of steps taken to secure his attendance.

Baffour Awuah, however, said he had not personally received the invitation and questioned why EOCO was trying to take him away from the court premises. He later said he feared he was being kidnapped and drove away from the scene.

Kpebu told Alfred Ocansey that the manner in which the EOCO officials approached the MP was itself problematic.

“If you listen to the video, the lady first talked about an invitation and then asked that he follows. And then eventually asked him to join the vehicle,” he said.

According to Kpebu, Baffour Awuah’s decision to offer to use his own vehicle instead of entering the EOCO vehicle should not have turned the encounter into a confrontation.

“He said he felt he was going to be kidnapped by EOCO. And all of that is wrong on the part of EOCO,” Kpebu said.

He argued that law enforcement agencies should take extra care when dealing with a sitting MP because parliamentary privileges can become an issue.

“When you have a member of Parliament as the target, in order not for you to suffer embarrassment, the safest thing is go through the Speaker of Parliament,” he said.

Kpebu referred to Article 117 of the 1992 Constitution, which protects the Speaker, MPs and the Clerk from the service or execution of civil or criminal process while they are on their way to, attending or returning from parliamentary proceedings. 

The constitutional provision does not create a blanket immunity from law enforcement, but limits service or execution in the circumstances specified in the article.

Kpebu said the point was not about preventing investigations into MPs.

“If you need an MP, send the application to the Speaker,” he told Ocansey.

He said following that route would allow investigators to carry out their work while also respecting Parliament’s institutional protections.

EOCO, for its part, has said it recognises and respects the constitutional privileges and immunities of MPs and that membership of Parliament does not place an individual beyond the reach of the law.

The agency also said it would not take action inconsistent with parliamentary privilege or other constitutional protections.

For Kpebu, however, the issue was the procedure used to deal with Baffour Awuah rather than whether an investigation should continue.

“We are here every day, ‘Akufo-Addo is corrupt, is corrupt, let’s get them out.’ Yes, I still believe so. But it doesn’t mean that Akufo-Addo’s MPs should just be shunted aside because we are still angry,” he said.

“Please, let’s protect them. The law is very clear.”