OSP can prosecute independently, but AG has power to terminate cases – Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has the legal authority to investigate and prosecute corruption-related offences independently, but the Attorney-General (AG) retains the constitutional power to discontinue such prosecutions by entering a nolle prosequi.

Deputy Attorney-General Justice Srem-Sai had argued before the court that prosecutorial authority under the Constitution belongs exclusively to the Attorney-General, and that any power exercised by the Office of the Special Prosecutor derives from the Attorney-General's constitutional mandate.

While upholding the OSP's prosecutorial independence, the court also made it clear that the Attorney-General retains the constitutional authority to intervene in criminal proceedings by entering a nolle prosequi, a legal process used to formally discontinue a prosecution.