Friday, August 29, 2008

MODEC to design sub-sea facility for Tullow Ghana

August 19, 2008

Tullow Ghana Limited has contracted MODEC International to design and instal a sub-sea facility which will be connected to a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel to pump oil out for production..
Tullow entered into the multi-million dollar agreement on behalf of Kosmos Energy Ghana Limited and its partners namely Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, EO Group, Sabre Oil and Gas, and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC).
MODEC, which specialises in the engineering, procurement, construction and installation of floating production systems was among four companies, namely, SBM, SAIPEM and BW Offshore, which expressed interest in building the FPSO.
Under the agreement, MODEC was also expected to operate the first FPSO to be installed on the Jubilee Field which contained large quantities of oil.
The contract was a seven year lease with "13 one-year options" meaning the contract could be extended thirteen times in one year.
According to a report on the contract made available to the Daily Graphic, it was estimated that the Jubilee Field oil reservoirs which were discovered in 2007 were highly productive and thus validated Kosmos Energy's fast-track appraisal and field development programme.
It said the FPSO, which was part of the Phase 1 development plan of the oil reservoirs would be installed in approximately 1,100 meters water depth on the Jubilee Field, which was one of the largest oil fields discovered offshore West Africa in the past 10 years.
The FPSO would be capable of processing more than 120,000 barrels of oil per day, and would inject more than 230,000 barrels of water per day and 160 Million Standard Cubic Feet per Day (MMscfd) of produced gas.
The pressure from the pumped water would force the oil out for production.
First oil was scheduled in 2010 and the FPSO would be designed to remain on the field for up to 20 years.
The report quoted Mr Kenji Yamada, President & CEO of MODEC, Inc., as saying "MODEC is very proud to have been selected by the Jubilee Unit partners and GNPC to provide and operate the Jubilee FPSO, a world class facility on a world class field.
We are equally pleased to be a part of the team that will provide a needed energy resource to benefit the people of Ghana," he continued.
It also quoted Mr Rick Hall, President of MODEC International, Inc., as stating that, "The Jubilee contract represents a significant milestone for MODEC in assisting Tullow and its partners to develop a world class oil field while also strengthening MODEC's infrastructure in West Africa."
The contract was awarded after test runs were conducted on the oil reservoirs in June 2008.
Kosmos Energy, which announced the oil find in June 2007, and its partners will need to invest about $5 billion to fully develop the fields to pave the way for the production of oil.
According to Kosmos Energy, with the backing of international private equity investors, Warburg Pincus and Blackstone Capital Partners, the company possessed a significant financial and operational capability to generate and participate in multiple high-impact upstream projects.
Due to the cost involved in drilling and the time frame needed for the acquisition of equipment, Kosmos and its partners will develop the discovered fields in phases.

Chief Justice swears in judges, magistrates

August 28, 2008 (Centre Spread)

Eleven circuit court judges and eight magistrates have been sworn in by the Chief Justice, Mrs Justice Georgina T. Wood.
On behalf of President J. A. Kufuor, the chief justice also swore in Ms Irene Charity Danquah as a Court of Appeal Judge.
The chief justice appealed to judges to discharge cases before them impartially and in accordance with the law.
“You must assert your independence as judges and insulate yourselves from influence which may unbalance the scales of justice,” she said.
Mrs Justice Wood reminded judges that acting contrary to their judicial oath amounted to dishonourable conduct.
According to the chief justice, “a show of disrespect to court users, high handedness and abuse or improper use of power, particularly the coercive powers of the court, augurs ill for the proper conduct of court business”.
She reminded judges and magistrates that their appointment was an honour and for that matter it was important for them to live above reproach.
Touching on adjournment of cases, Mrs Justice Wood said an alarming trend where judges and magistrates created mountains of partly heard cases had reared its ugly head.
She explained that one was not required to undergo any formal training in judicial case management to appreciate the fact that heaping cases was a retrogressive way of running courts in this globalised world.
She noted that such acts created enormous difficulties for key actors in the justice delivery system and stated that the public, who are expected to be served diligently, ended up going in and out of court endlessly without any clue on when their cases would be completed.
She emphasised that “such dangerous practices create untold financial, emotional and psychological difficulties for court users,” adding that “I hope as adjudicators, you will have such a strong passion for justice and be sensitive to the needs of disputants who appear before you”.
She congratulated Ms Justice Danquah and said, “Ms Danquah has demonstrated that she has the skills and professional acumen needed to take up this new and exciting challenge”.
She said Ms Danquah had expertise in business law, intellectual property law and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) among others.
Mrs Justice Wood urged lawyers to join the bench in order to build a strong judiciary for the country.
The Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, said the judges were being sworn in at a time when Ghana was seen as a beacon of hope for Africa.
He congratulated the judiciary on its independence in the administration of justice and urged it to continue with its good works.
Mr Ghartey also appealed to judges to administer justice with mercy.
A representative of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), Mr Benson Nutsukpui, pledged the full support of the Bar to the Bench.
He said the association had received complaints from some members, who said they had been mistreated by some judges and magistrates and, therefore, appealed to judges and magistrates to respect lawyers.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

GLOA: One million jobs will be lost, if ...

August 25, 2008 (Page 3 Lead)

THE Ghana Lotto Operators Association (GLOA) says one million jobs will be lost, if the Accra Fast Track High Court's ruling which outlawed the activities of private lotto operators is not reversed.
The association and six others have therefore filed for a stay of execution of the High Court's judgement, pending the determination of an appeal against the ruling .The motion for the appeal will be moved on Wednesday, September 3, 2008.
According to the General Secretary of the Ghana Lotto Operators Association (GLOA), Mr Seth Amoani, the GLOA had engaged the services of more than one million employees and lotto agents who operated in all districts in the country and for that reason, they and their dependants had been adversely affected by the ruling, which he described as untenable.
Reacting to the Fast Track High Court's ruling, he said the court's decision contravened the Supreme Court's ruling of July 23, 2008, which said “the analysis by the defendant (NLA) is largely correct except that the plaintiffs are not at the mercy of the state in seeking to participate in the state regulated lottery industry. The licensing regime has to conform to the standards set in Article 296 of the Constitution”.
He said the lower court's decision further contravened the Supreme Court ruling which said that “the National Lottery Authority has a duty to be fair and candid in allocating licences to those who wish to participate in the lottery business”.
The Accra Fast Track High Court, presided over by Mr Justice Edward Asante, on Wednesday, August 20, 2008, dismissed the entire action instituted against the National Lottery Authority (NLA) by the GLOA.
The court relied on a Supreme Court ruling which declared the Lotto Act as constitutional and maintained that the order from the NLA directing the GLOA to hand over their equipment was valid and must be complied with by the plaintiffs.
The lotto operators had sought to question the constitutionality of the National Lottery Authority (NLA) Act 2006, Act 722.
In dismissing the case, the court also ordered the GLOA and six others to surrender their lotto draw equipment to the NLA.
It also awarded a total cost of GH¢14,000 against the plaintiffs and each of the plaintiffs was expected to pay GH¢2,000.
The other plaintiffs are Obiri Asare and Sons Limited, Rambel Enterprise Limited, Dan Multipurpose Trading Enterprise Limited, Agrop Association Limited, Star Lotto Limited and From-Home Enterprises.
The plaintiffs had sought a declaration that the directive from the NLA to private lotto operators to surrender machines or equipment used for the operation of lottery to the Director-General by August 14, 2007 was unconstitutional, illegal and unreasonable but the Fast Track High Court held that the plaintiffs were not entitled to any compensation because they did not make such claims in their statement of case.
The GLOA had argued that the Department of National Lotteries (DNL) had doubled as the NLA to monopolise the lotto business to the detriment of the GLOA, which had given employment to many, as well as raised revenue for the state.
The plaintiffs have since filed for stay of execution of the court's orders pending the outcome of the appeal on the grounds that the ruling was "wrong in law and an improper exercise of discretion”.
According to the plaintiffs , "the subsequent dismissal of our action raises serious questions of law and fact which would have to be considered by the appellate court".
An affidavit in support of their motion for stay of execution stated that the ruling of the Fast Track High Court had the potential of folding up the business of the plaintiffs, which, it said "would be irreparable in the likely event that the appellate court reverses the wrongful ruling".
It said the appeal, which was likely to succeed, touched on the fundamental human rights of the plaintiffs and accordingly prayed the court to restrain the NLA from interfering with the work or property rights of the plaintiffs, pending the determination of the appeal.
According to the plaintiffs, the Supreme Court recognised that the plaintiffs were not at the mercy of the state in seeking to participate in the state regulated lottery industry.
It further argued that the Supreme Court never said the plaintiffs could not participate in the state regulated lottery industry.
According to the plaintiffs/appellants, the trial judge erred in law by summarily dismissing an action which concerned their fundamental human rights.
They further stated that the trial judge failed in his duty to give them a fair hearing in a case involving serious issues of fact and several pieces of evidence.
The appellants are, therefore, praying for an order to set aside the ruling of the trial court, as well as an order to restore the appellants’ action for it to be determined on the merits after a proper hearing.
According to the appellants, they would file additional grounds of appeal upon receipt of the court's ruling.
The Fast Track High Court’s ruling followed an application filed by the NLA, which prayed the court to dismiss the plaintiffs’ suit on the premise that the Supreme Court had declared the Lotto Act as constitutional and for that reason there was no basis for the substantive suit to continue at the lower court.
The plaintiffs had maintained that the National Lotto Act, 2006 (Act 722), which outlawed the operations of lotto business by private lotto operators, infringed the constitutionally guaranteed right of the private lotto operators to free economic activity.
Following the Supreme Court's ruling, the parties were expected to go back to the High Court, where the substantive issue was pending for directions because the Supreme Court neither gave any orders nor awarded costs but the matter was transferred from the High Court to the Fast Track High Court on the orders of the Chief Justice.
Consequently, the NLA filed the application at the Fast Track High Court praying the court to dismiss the plaintiffs’ case.
The GLOA, on August 13, 2007, began the action at the High Court and applied for an interlocutory injunction against the NLA, which was granted, until the determination of the matter.
However, since the NLA raised the issue of constitutionality, the matter went to the Supreme Court because the law required that proceedings in such issues should be stayed for determination by the superior court to serve as a guide to the trial court.
The Accra High Court, on March 14, 2008, granted an interlocutory injunction filed by the GLOA to restrain the NLA from interfering with the property rights of lotto operating businesses of the plaintiffs.
According to the court, the outcome of the case at the Supreme Court would guide it in its decision in the case because the issue of constitutionality had been raised by the NLA.

Japanese govt supports Ghana's technical training

August 25, 2008 (Page 17)

THE Japanese government has provided $3.5 million to support the government’s Technical, Vocational and Educational Training (TVET) reform project aimed at enhancing technical and vocational education and training in the country.
The money would be used to supply machinery and equipment towards piloting such institutions as the Accra Polytechnic, the National Vocational and Technical Institute (NVTI) and the Accra Technical Training Centre (ATTC).
Under the project, the Japanese government through the Japanese International Co-operation Agency (JICA) would provide competence-based training to beneficiaries.
The Chief Advisor to the Council for Technical, Vocational Education and Training (COTVET), Mr Kenji Kimura, told the Daily Graphic in an interview during a courtesy call on the Editor of the Daily Graphic, Mr Ransford Tetteh, that the project would enhance the human resource capacity of beneficiaries and thus improve the performance of industry and the national economy as a whole.
By law, COTVET was expected to implement the reforms under the TVET project, which was aimed at improving the knowledge, skills and attitude of beneficiaries.
According to Mr Kimura, the traditional TVET system only provided knowledge and did not meet industrial needs and that had resulted in the non performance of some industries in the past.
He said the core values of the reforms were aimed at equipping beneficiaries with the requisite skills to effectively work for their own benefit, that of their companies and the country as a whole.
Mr Kimura explained that COTVET was expected to implement the TVET project nationwide after the completion of the pilot project in 2011.
Currently, he said lecturers and teachers had undergone training abroad to facilitate the implementation of the reforms.
According to him, beneficiaries would be trained to acquire skills and the right working attitude to be time conscious, productive and profit oriented.
He said Japan had since 1903 implemented a similar project and that had contributed immensely to the growth of the Japanese economy.

Alhaji Hearts granted bail

August 22, 2008 (Page 23)

THE Accra Circuit Court yesterday granted bail in the sum of GH¢25,000 with one surety to Alhaji Braimah Sulemana, aka Alhaji Hearts, who is standing trial with two others for alleged money laundering.
The two others, namely Claribel Ewura Esi Kinful, a cabin crew member of the Ghana International Airlines, and Alhaji Ahmed Tijani, a taxi driver, were each granted bail in the sum of GH¢25,000 with two sureties.
The court, presided over by Mr Nathaniel Osam, ordered the accused persons to report to the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) on Mondays.
The accused persons were also expected to appear again before the court on September 10, 2008.
They pleaded not guilty to various counts of conspiracy, concealment of currency and abetment of crime.
Prosecuting, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) George Abavelim told the court that on August 8, 2008, Ghana International Airlines flight number G.O. 104 arrived at the Kotoka International Airport.
He said a random search conducted by security personnel of the airline revealed £59,870 concealed in two travelling bags belonging to Claribel.
Upon interrogation, Claribel disclosed that the money was given to her by one George in the United Kingdom to be delivered to someone in Accra.
According to the prosecution, Claribel told the security personnel that the person was expected to call her on phone and take delivery of the money.
She, however, could not provide any information on the said George.
The prosecution stated that on August 14, 2008 Alhaji Hearts, who is also a Board Member of Accra Hearts of Oak Football Club, went to the BNI headquarters where Claribel was being detained to claim ownership of the money.
Alhaji Hearts, who was accompanied by Tijani, told BNI officials that about one and a half years ago, he sent £50,000 through one Mushoo to Tijani to buy him (Alhaji Hearts) a house in the UK.
However, Tijani in a separate interrogation disclosed that Alhaji Hearts personally brought the money to the UK.
According to the prosecution, further investigations were being conducted to ascertain the truth of the matter in view of the discrepancies in the statements of the accused persons.
The counsel for the accused persons, Mr Kwame Akuffo, had earlier prayed the court to grant the accused persons bail, since they were law-abiding citizens and would avail themselves for trial.
He also told the court that the money was in the custody of the police and stated that Alhaji Hearts would co-operate with the court to ensure that justice prevailed.
Hundreds of sympathisers besieged the court premises to show solidarity to Alhaji Hearts and the other accused persons.

NO LOTTO - For private operators, Fast Track Couort rules

August 21, 2008 (Lead Story)

THE activities of private lotto operators have now been outlawed in Ghana.
This follows a ruling by the Accra Fast-track High Court yesterday which dismissed the action instituted against the National Lottery Authority (NLA) by the Ghana Lotto Operators Association (GLOA).
The lotto operators had sought to question the constitutionality of the National Lottery Authority (NLA) Act 2006, Act 722.
In dismissing the case, the court also ordered the GLOA and six others to surrender their lotto drawing equipment to the NLA.
It also awarded a total cost of GH¢14,000 against the plaintiffs. Each of the plaintiffs was expected to pay GH¢2,000.
The other plaintiffs are Obiri Asare and Sons Limited, Rambel Enterprise Limited, Dan Multipurpose Trading Enterprise Limited, Agrop Association Limited, Star Lotto Limited and From-Home Enterprises.
The plaintiffs, who looked bereft after the court’s ruling, declared their intention to file for stay of execution of the order which they described as untenable.
The plaintiffs had sought a declaration that the directive from the NLA to private lotto operators to surrender machines or equipment used for the operation of lottery to the Director-General by August 14, 2007 was unconstitutional, illegal and unreasonable.
But the Fast-track High Court relied on a Supreme Court ruling which declared the Lotto Act as constitutional and maintained that the order from the NLA was valid and must be complied with by the plaintiffs.
The Supreme Court had, in a unanimous decision on July 23, declared the Act constitutional but stated that “the analysis by the defendant (NLA) is largely correct except that the plaintiffs are not at the mercy of the state in seeking to participate in the state regulated lottery industry. The licensing regime has to conform to the standards set in Article 296 of the Constitution”.
The Supreme Court further ruled that “the National Lottery Authority has a duty to be fair and candid in allocating licences to those who wish to participate in the lottery business.”
In its ruling, the Fast-track High Court further held that the plaintiffs were not entitled to any compensation because they did not make such claims in their statement of case, adding that the plaintiffs were only “shifting the goal posts”.
The Fast-track High Court’s ruling followed an application filed by the NLA, which prayed the court to dismiss the plaintiffs’ suit on the premise that the Supreme Court had declared the Lotto Act as constitutional and for that reason there was no basis for the substantive suit to continue at the lower court.
The plaintiffs had maintained that the National Lotto Act, 2006 (Act 722), which outlawed the operations of lotto business by private lotto operators, infringed the constitutionally guaranteed right of the private lotto operators to free economic activity but the court held otherwise.
According to the plaintiffs, who have also declared their intention to appeal against the court’s ruling, the creation of the NLA to take over and monopolise the operation of the lotto business in Ghana infringed the constitutional injunction to the government to ensure a pronounced role for the private sector in the economy.
The Supreme Court on July 23, 2008 stated that the National Lottery Authority (NLA) Act 2006, Act 722, was not in contravention of the 1992 Constitution and that the statement of claim of the plaintiffs did not state in any way how the law infringed on their rights, especially those enshrined in Articles 33(5), 35(1) and 36 (2)(b).
Following the ruling, the parties were expected to go back to the High Court, where the substantive issue was pending for directions because the Supreme Court neither gave any orders nor award costs.
As a result of the Supreme Court’s decision, the NLA filed the application at the Fast-track High Court before a vacation judge, praying the court to dismiss the plaintiffs’ case.
The GLOA, on August 13, 2007, began the action at the High Court and applied for an interlocutory injunction against the NLA, which was granted, until the determination of the matter.
However, since the NLA raised the issue of constitutionality, the matter went to the Supreme Court because the law required that proceedings in such issues should be stayed for determination by the superior court to serve as a guide to the trial court.
According to the plaintiffs, the NLA had taken over the assets of the Department of National Lotteries (DNL), instead of overseeing the operations of the DNL, thereby resulting in the cessation of the existence of the DNL.
The GLOA said the National Lotto Act, which outlawed the operations of lotto business by private lotto operators, infringed the constitutionally guaranteed right of private lotto operators to free economic activity.
However, the NLA insisted that the law was constitutional and, therefore, did not infringe on the rights of the GLOA.
The Accra High Court, on March 14, 2008, granted an interlocutory injunction filed by the GLOA to restrain the NLA from interfering with the property rights of lotto operating businesses of the plaintiffs.
According to the court, the outcome of the case at the Supreme Court would guide it in its decision in the case because the issue of constitutionality had been raised by the NLA.

A-G wants Tsatsu's sentence extended

August 20, 2008 (Page 3 Lead)

THE State has called for an enhancement of the five-year sentence imposed on Tsatsu Tsikata by the Accra Fast Track High Court for causing financial loss.
“The sentence is not proportionate, having regards to the gravity of the offence,” a notice of appeal filed by a Chief State Attorney, Ms Valerie Amate, pointed out.
According to the state, it was dissatisfied with the sentence imposed on the former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) and it would, therefore, seek the Court of Appeal to aggravate the sentence.
The notice further stated that additional grounds of appeal would be filed upon receipt of certified true copies of the judgement and record of proceedings.
Tsikata was, on June 18, 2008, found guilty on three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state and another count of misapplying public property.
The court, presided over by Mrs Justice Henrietta Abban, a Court of Appeal judge sitting with additional responsibility as a High Court judge, accordingly sentenced Tsikata to five years’ imprisonment on each count to run concurrently.
The former chief executive of the GNPC was charged in 2002 with three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state through a loan he guaranteed for Valley Farms, a private cocoa-producing company, on behalf of the GNPC and another count of misapplying GH¢2,000 of public property.
Valley Farms contracted the loan from Caisse Francaise de Development in 1991, but defaulted in the payment and the GNPC, which acted as the guarantor, was compelled to pay it in 1996.
He has since filed an appeal against his conviction.
Mrs Justice Abban, on July 30, 2008, dismissed a bail application filed by Tsikata, pending an appeal against his five-year conviction.
According to the trial judge, Tsikata’s refusal to move the motion for bail pending appeal was an indication that he (Tsikata) was no longer interested in pursuing the application for bail.
She had earlier refused to decline jurisdiction in the hearing of the bail application on the grounds that she was not biased, as was being alleged by Tsikata.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has fixed October 16, 2008 to give its ruling on Tsikata’s application seeking the court to quash the Fast Track High Court judgement.

Friday, August 15, 2008

Court to decide on lotto operators' suit August 20

Friday, August 15, 2008 (Page 31)

THE Accra Fast Track High Court will on Wednesday, August 20, 2008 decide whether or not to dismiss an action instituted against the National Lottery Authority (NLA) by the Ghana Lotto Operators Association (GLOA) on the constitutionality or otherwise of the National Lottery Authority (NLA) Act 2006, Act 722.
The court fixed the date after counsel for the NLA, Mr Kizito Beyuo and counsel for the GLOA, Mr Aurelius Awuku, had argued on the matter at the court’s sitting in Accra yesterday.
Mr Beyuo prayed the court to dismiss GLOA’s suit against the NLA on the grounds that the Supreme Court had declared as constitutional the Lotto Act and for that reason there was no basis for the suit to continue at the lower court.
According to him, the entire basis of the claim by GLOA and six other plaintiffs was that the Lotto Act was unconstitutional and infringed on their rights.
He said since the Supreme Court in a unanimous decision on July 23, 2008 declared the Lotto Act as constitutional and did not infringe on the plaintiff’s rights, the plaintiffs action was bereft of any cause of action.
Mr Beyuo accordingly prayed the court to dismiss the plaintiffs’ action and award costs.
Replying, Mr Awuku said the matter could not be heard summarily because it involved the GLOA and six others, namely Obiri Asare and Sons Limited, Rambel Enterprise Limited, Dan Multi-Purpose Trading Enterprise Limited, Agrop Association Limited, Star Lotto Limited and From-Home Enterprises.
He said taking away the businesses of the plaintiffs developed over the years without the payment of the requisite compensation was not right.
According to Mr Awuku, the matter did not border on only the constitutionality or otherwise of the Lotto Act, but involved the unreasonable directive from the NLA, which had virtually outlawed the operations of the GLOA.
Counsel informed the court that the argument raised by the NLA exposed the NLA’s confusion on the matter and for that reason, it was important for the case to be heard on its merit.
Mr Awuku prayed the court not to entertain the NLA’s application on the grounds that the NLA was virtually asking the court to accede to “kangaroo” style of adjudication of cases.
He said the Supreme Court recognised that there were cogent matters that required investigation and determination by the High Court and so did not make a consequential order terminating the plaintiffs’ case.
According to counsel, the plaintiffs’ case was “too weighty’ to be determined summarily.
He accordingly prayed the court to dismiss the NLA’s application on the grounds that it was without merit.
The Supreme Court on July 23, 2008 stated that the National Lottery Authority (NLA) Act 2006, Act 722, was not in contravention of the 1992 Constitution and that the statement of claim of the plaintiffs did not state in any way how the law infringed on their rights, especially those enshrined in Articles 33(5), 35(1) and 36 (2)(b).
Following the ruling, the parties were expected to go back to the High Court where the substantive issue was pending for directions because the Supreme Court neither gave any orders nor award costs.
As a result of the Supreme Court’s decision, the NLA filed the application at the Fast-track High Court before a vacation judge, praying the court to dismiss the plaintiffs case.
The GLOA, on August 13, 2007, began the action at the High Court and applied for an interlocutory injunction against the NLA, which was granted, until the determination of the matter.
However, since the NLA raised the issue of constitutionality, the matter went to the Supreme Court because the law required that proceedings in such issues should be stayed for determination by the superior court to serve as a guide to the trial court.
According to the plaintiffs, the NLA had taken over the assets of the Department of National Lotteries (DNL), instead of overseeing the operations of the DNL, thereby resulting in the cessation of the existence of the DNL.
The GLOA said the National Lotto Act, which outlawed the operations of lotto business by private lotto operators, infringed the constitutionally guaranteed right of private lotto operators to free economic activity.
However, the NLA insisted that the law was constitutional and, therefore, did not infringe on the rights of the GLOA.
The Accra High Court, on March 14, 2008, granted an interlocutory injunction filed by the GLOA to restrain the NLA from interfering with the property rights of lotto operating businesses of the plaintiffs.
According to the court, the outcome of the case at the Supreme Court would guide it in its decision in the case because the issue of constitutionality had been raised by the NLA.

MV Benjamin - One prisoner dies

Tuesday, August 12, 2008 (Page 31)

PHILIP Bruce-Arhin, one of the persons who was sentenced to 25 years’ imprisonment in the MV Benjamin cocaine case, is dead.
He died from jaundice at the infirmary of the Nsawam Prisons last Saturday barely three weeks after his conviction.
He was reported to have been discharged from the Nsawam Government Hospital on Friday, August, 8, 2008 but he died in the morning of August 9, 2008 at the prisons.
According to sources close to the MV Benjamin cocaine case, Bruce-Arhin had been on admission at the Nsawam Government Hospital since the last week of July, 2008.
Sources further disclosed that Bruce-Arhin’s wife was informed of her husband’s death when she visited later in the day. She was said to have wailed uncontrollably after hearing of the news.
Family members have been informed of Bruce-Arhin’s death but his body is yet to be handed over to them.
The late Bruce-Arhin was not present in court on July 25, 2008, the day of his sentence, due to ill-health.
The four other convicts — Joseph Kojo Dawson, the owner of the MV Benjamin vessel, which was used to cart 77 parcels of cocaine into the country, Isaac Arhin, as well as Cui Xian Li and Luo Yin Xing, both Chinese — are currently serving their terms at the Nsawam Prisons.
The four were each also convicted to a term of 25 years’ imprisonment after they stood trial for 20 months alongside the deceased.
The convicts, including the deceased, were found guilty on charges of using property for narcotic offences, engaging in prohibited business relating to narcotics and possession of narcotic drugs without lawful authority.
They had earlier pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
A sixth accused person, Pak Bok Sil, a Korean national, was on Tuesday, October 16, 2007 acquitted and discharged by the court, which ruled that the prosecution had failed to prove a case against him.
The MV Benjamin was used to cart 77 parcels of cocaine weighing 2,310 kilogrammes, with a street value of $138.6 million, for the alleged cocaine fugitive, Sheriff Asem Dakeh, alias The Limping Man, who hired the vessel in February 2006.
However, 76 parcels of the drug later disappeared after the vessel was impounded in March 2006.

Court dismisses appeal against Osafo-Maafo, two others

Monday, August 11, 2008 (Page 38)

THE Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal filed against a former Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Yaw Osafo-Maafo, and two others by a man who calls himself Oppong Kyekyeku Chancellor Kohl.
Mr Kohl had filed a writ at the High Court against Mr Osafo-Maafo, Ghana’s former High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Mr Isaac Osei, and Madam Yaa Helena, a businesswoman, claiming that the defendants had since November 15, 2003 withheld his £254,000 and refused to hand over his first class LLB Certificate awarded to him by a university in the United Kingdom.
According to Mr Kohl, the £254,000 was paid to him by way of compensation by the Home Office and Senate House University of London as a result of administrative error over his LLB examination and his subsequent remand for five months.
However, the High Court dismissed the writ on the grounds that it had no merit and was calculated to soil the reputation of the defendants after it studied the appellant’s statement of claim.
The High Court had on February 1, 2007 ruled that the action appeared to be an adventure for a wild goose chase calculated to soil the reputation of the defendants.
Not satisfied with the High Court’s decision, Mr Kohl then proceeded to the Court of Appeal to challenge the decision of the lower court.
According to the Court of Appeal, which was presided over by Mr Justice P. Baffoe-Bonnie with Mr Justice B. T. Aryeetey and Mr Justice E. K. Ayebi as panel members, Mr Kohl’s appeal “defy all known rules of pleading and actually defy comprehension.”
It said the statement of case filed pursuant to Rule 20 (1) of CI 19 added to the confusion, but, however, held that it decided to consider the appeal on the grounds that the appellant was not a lawyer and was also not represented by counsel.
According to the court, it also decided to look into the appeal on the grounds that the appellant had argued that the High Court’s ruling was completely against the weight of evidence on record.
Ruling on the matter, the court further held that the appellant disclosed no cause of action against Helena while the records indicated that Mr Osei was served with the writ of summons through a fascimile (fax) which was wrong, according to the law.
It further indicated that Mr Osafo-Maafo was also served through his Secretary by name Miss Beatrice while he (Mr Osafo-Maafo) was the Minister of Education and Sports.
The court, therefore, ruled that the Rules did not make room for service of documents through the medium of fax and it was, therefore, appropriate for the High Court judge to have ruled that the mode of service of the writ on Mr Osafo-Maafo and Mr Osei were procedurally wrong.
It, however, indicated that the appellant had the right to re-issue his writ if he so wished by adopting the right procedure.

Monday, August 4, 2008

THE PROPOSED GT-VODAFONE DEAL - MINISTER DARES CRITICS • PRODUCE BETTER ALTERNATIVES WITHIN 24 HRS, HE CHALLENGESAG

AUGUST 4,2008 (LEAD STORY)

THE Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, has given critics of the GT-Vodafone deal 24 hours to provide potential buyers of Ghana Telecom who had the ability to inject higher funds into the company’s operations.
He also challenged critics to provide the names of their transaction advisers and the value they placed on Ghana Telecom.
Speaking with the Daily Graphic, Mr Baah-Wiredu said the company, which he described as strategic, had only $167 million in its accounts and, therefore, an additional $199 million was needed to cater for equipment, advertisements, stationery, fuel, as well as salaries and pensions of its workers.
He said the company’s current financial state and the future of the 4,200 workers were endangered and asked opponents of the GT-Vodafone deal not to hold them to ransom.
“The employees of Ghana Telecom cannot be held to ransom. They are Ghanaians and their continuous employment must be assured,” he said, adding that “their continuous employment would be guaranteed if Ghana Telecom is linked to Vodafone”.
He said the government had not short-changed Ghana Telecom in any way in the transactions and that the transaction would move the company forward, as well as bring about healthy competition in the telecom sector.
He said the company could collapse if its 70 per cent shares were not sold to Vodafone. He said in West Africa and in most part of the world, it was only Ghana Telecom that was operating without an international partner and things could not continue to remain so.
He said Ghanaians would continue to dominate in the daily affairs of the company and gave further assurance that the government would retain 30 per cent shares in the company.
According to the minister, the government announced its intentions of privatising Ghana Telecom in its November 2005 budget statement and therefore critics had been given enough time to provide better options to saving Ghana Telecom from collapse.
He said the government had publicly declared its buyer and the amount the buyer had offered and further stated that its transaction adviser was Ecobank Development Corporation (EDC).
The minister further argued that the sale of Ghana Telecom to Vodafone was justified because the price offer was the best compared to other companies that had offered to purchase 70 per cent shares.
“We are convinced Vodafone’s $900 million offer does not amount to cheating,” Mr Baah-Wiredu emphasised.
He named the other companies that put in their bid for Ghana Telecom as France Telecom, Portugal Telecom and Vodacom of South Africa.
He said France Telecom offered $546 million while Portugal Telecom and Vodacom offered $508 million and $363 million respectively for 70 per cent shares in Ghana Telecom.
Mr Baah-Wiredu further explained that even if the $30 million in the National Communication Backbone Company and the $55.5 million in the Volta River Authority’s Fibre Optic known as Voltacom were added to the offers of the other three telecom companies, their offer would not match that of Vodafone.
In any case, the minister stated, the government valued Ghana Telecom at ¢1.286 billion and it was only Vodafone that offered 70 per cent of that value.
He, therefore, challenged critics to bring their offer on board for a healthy debate and also reminded them that there was no time to waste because Ghana Telecom was in dire need of funds to operate.

SUPREME COURT ADVISES TSATSU, AG TO FILE PAPERS

JULY 30, 2008 (CENTRE SPREAD)

THE Supreme Court yesterday advised Tsatsu Tsikata and the Attorney-General to file the necessary processes by today, July 30, 2008 to enable the court to hear Tsikata’s application which is seeking the court to quash the Fast Track High Court judgement which incarcerated him for five years.
According to the President of the court, Ms Justice Sophia Akuffo, it was important for the parties to avoid what she termed “unnecessary surprise skirmishes” to pave the way for the hearing of the application on Thursday, 31, 2008.
She, therefore, advised the parties to oppose each other’s application with “practical reasons” to avoid the unnecessary dragging of issues.
Ms Justice Akuffo gave the advice when Tsikata, the former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), moved his application at the court’s sitting in Accra yesterday and further prayed the court to enable him to respond to the Attorney-General’s opposition to his application.
Other members of the panel were Mr Justice Julius Ansah, Ms Justice Rose Owusu, Mr Justice S. K. Asiamah and Mr Justice Jones Dotse.
The matter had been adjourned sine die on two different occasions after Tsikata had raised objection to the empanelling of Mr Justice S. A. Brobbey and Mr Justice Annin Yeboah.
At the court’s sitting on July 16, 2008, he sprang a surprise by telling the packed court that he objected to the empanelling of Mr Justice Brobbey to hear the matter because the judge had conducted investigations into allegations of bias against the trial judge, Mrs Justice Henrietta Abban, who sentenced him.
On July 22, 2008, Tsikata objected to the empanelling of Mr Justice Yeboah on the grounds that the judge was part of the panel at the Court of Appeal which heard his appeal regarding the immunity of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to testify for him.
The Accra Fast Track High Court on July 15, 2008 stayed proceedings in a mini trial requested by the jailed former chief executive of the GNPC to determine allegations of bias against Mrs Justice Abban.
That followed a motion filed by the Attorney-General (A-G) and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, on the grounds that the reliefs being sought by Tsikata were the same as another application before the Supreme Court.
Tsikata, however, thought otherwise and insisted that his application before the superior court was different.
Tsikata filed a motion at the court to disqualify Mrs Justice Abban, a Court of Appeal judge with additional responsibility as a High Court judge, who had tried and jailed him for five years for causing financial loss to the state and misapplying public property, from hearing his application for bail pending the outcome of an appeal he had filed against his sentence.
He, therefore, sought a mini trial as consequent to a recommendation by the Chief Justice that his petition of bias against the trial judge could not be handled administratively but by a court of competent jurisdiction.
However, before the case could be heard, the A-G filed a motion to stay proceedings pending a similar issue before the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court, on June 25, 2008, suspended judgement on whether or not the IFC should be ordered to testify in the case in which Tsikata was accused of causing financial loss to the state.
That followed a request by Tsikata to the court to “arrest” its judgement and invoke its supervisory jurisdiction by quashing his conviction by the lower court.
Tsikata was, on June 18, 2008, found guilty on three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state and another count of misapplying public property and sentenced to five years imprisonment on each count to run concurrently.
The former chief executive of the GNPC was charged in 2002 with three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state through a loan he guaranteed for Valley Farms, a private cocoa producing company, on behalf of the GNPC and another count of misapplying GH¢2,000 of public property.
Valley Farms contracted the loan from Caisse Francaise de Developement in 1991 but defaulted in the payment and the GNPC, which acted as the guarantor, was compelled to pay it in 1996.

TSATSU TSIKATA'S BAIL APPLICATION DISMISSED

JULY 31, 2008 (PAGE 3 LEAD)


THE Accra Fast Track High Court yesterday dismissed a bail application filed by Tsatsu Tsikata pending an appeal against his five-year conviction for causing financial loss to the state.
According to the trial judge, Mrs Justice Henrietta Abban, Tsikata’s refusal to move the motion for bail pending appeal was an indication that he (Tsikata) was no longer interested in pursuing the application for bail.
She had earlier refused to decline jurisdiction in the hearing of the bail application on the grounds that she was not biased, as was being alleged by Tsikata, the former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC).
Dismissing the application to disqualify herself, Mrs Justice Abban said Tsikata was given a fair chance to defend himself during the six-year trial.
Referring to Tsikata’s claim that she (the trial judge) allegedly had a conversation with a court registrar in which she said she had heard Tsikata had filed an application for bail and that she would not grant it if it was placed before her, she said, “Idle talk and gossip cannot determine the independence or otherwise of the judiciary,” adding, “I have dismissed the application to disqualify myself.”
Tsikata, who represented himself, then moved in and said he did not understand the ruling because he was seeking a mini trial on the conduct of the trial judge in another court.
He also stated that he could not move the motion for bail, since it would amount to what he termed “a trial within a trial”.
Tsikata further indicated that he had not, in any case, received a copy of the July 18, 2008 judgement which convicted him.
Responding to Tsikata’s application, a Principal State Attorney, Mr Edward Agyeman Duodu, prayed the court to dismiss the application if Tsikata was not ready to move the motion for bail pending appeal against his conviction.
Mrs Justice Abban then said she was adjourning the case sine die, but after several minutes of note taking, she announced to the court that since Tsikata was not willing to move his bail application, it was deemed that he was no longer interested in pursuing the application.
She then moved in to accordingly dismiss the application.
On June 23, 2008, Tsikata alleged that Mrs Justice Abban had said in Twi, "Ma jail no a ma jail no," literally meaning, "If I have jailed him, I have jailed him".
He, therefore, argued that she was not qualified to hear his bail application.
However, Mr Duodu said it was improper for Tsikata to raise such issues of bias before the court because he had raised the same issue before the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.
In a related development, the Supreme Court on Tuesday, July 29, 2008 advised Tsikata and the Attorney-General to file the necessary processes by yesterday, July 30, 2008 to enable the court to hear Tsikata’s application which was seeking the court to quash the Fast Track High Court judgement which incarcerated him for five years.
The court, presided over by Ms Justice Sophia Akuffo, had Mr Justice Julius Ansah, Ms Justice Rose Owusu, Mr Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie and Mr Justice Jones Dotse as its panel members.
The matter had been adjourned sine die on two different occasions after Tsikata had raised objection to the empanelling of Mr Justice S. A. Brobbey and Mr Justice Annin Yeboah.
At the court’s sitting on July 16, 2008, he sprang a surprise by telling the packed court that he objected to the empanelling of Mr Justice Brobbey to hear the matter because the judge had conducted investigations into allegations of bias against Mrs Justice Abban.
On July 22, 2008, Tsikata objected to the empanelling of Mr Justice Yeboah on the grounds that the judge was part of the panel at the Court of Appeal which heard his appeal regarding the immunity of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to testify for him.
The two judges have since been replaced with Mr Justices Asiamah and Baffoe-Bonnie.
The Accra Fast Track High Court on July 15, 2008 stayed proceedings in a mini trial requested by Tsikata to determine allegations of bias against Mrs Justice Abban.
That followed a motion filed by the Attorney-General (A-G) and Minister of Justice, Mr Joe Ghartey, on the grounds that the reliefs being sought by Tsikata were the same as another application before the Supreme Court.
Tsikata, however, thought otherwise and insisted that his application before the superior court was different.
Tsikata filed a motion at the court to disqualify Mrs Justice Abban, a Court of Appeal judge with additional responsibility as a High Court judge, from hearing his application for bail, pending the outcome of an appeal he had filed against his sentence.
He, therefore, sought a mini trial as consequent to a recommendation by the Chief Justice that his petition of bias against the trial judge could not be handled administratively, but by a court of competent jurisdiction.
However, before the case could be heard, the A-G filed a motion to stay proceedings, pending a similar issue before the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court, on June 25, 2008, suspended judgement on whether or not the IFC should be ordered to testify in the case in which Tsikata was accused of causing financial loss to the state.
That followed a request by Tsikata to the court to “arrest” its judgement and invoke its supervisory jurisdiction by quashing his conviction by the lower court.
Tsikata was, on June 18, 2008, found guilty on three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state and another count of misapplying public property and sentenced to five years imprisonment on each count to run concurrently.
The former chief executive of the GNPC was charged in 2002 with three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the state through a loan he guaranteed for Valley Farms, a private cocoa producing company, on behalf of the GNPC and another count of misapplying GH¢2,000 of public property.
Valley Farms contracted the loan from Caisse Francaise de Developement in 1991 but defaulted in the payment and the GNPC, which acted as the guarantor, was compelled to pay it in 1996.

MV BENJAMIN COCAINE CASE - 5 JAILED 125 YRS

JULY 26, 2008 (LEAD STORY)

r the court to hand deterrent sentences.
Commenting on the disappearance of the cocaine, Mr Justice Yeboah said the conduct of narcotic officials during the apprehension of the accused persons was incomprehensible.
He wondered why five parcels out of the 30 seized got missing and recommended that the appropriate authorities should ensure that the truth was eventually unearthed.
The court held that Dawson had prior knowledge that the vessel was to be used to cart cocaine from Liberian waters and, accordingly, dismissed his claim of innocence.
Citing authorities to buttress its decision, the trial judge submitted that Sheriff deliberately left one parcel of cocaine, weighing 30 kilogrammes, to pay Dawson, who had hired out the vessel to Sheriff without receiving a supposed payment of $150,000.
The court said credible prosecution witnesses had led enough evidence to prove that Dawson, who is the Managing Director of Dashment Company Limited in Tema, failed to register the crew members and the whereabouts of the vessel with the maritime authority, as was required by law, in order to further his diabolic interest.
It said Dawson’s own defence proved that many shady agreements had been signed to facilitate the carting of the narcotic drug.
The court held, for instance, that it had emerged that Dawson’s father appended his signature to the charter agreement with Sheriff when Dawson had earlier claimed he was solely in charge of running the daily affairs of the company, while his father was only an advisor.
It further held that it was also bizarre for Dawson and his cronies to have fraudulently used the name of Evans Charwatey, a prosecution witness, in the signing of the charter agreement when Dawson knew Sheriff’s name was not Evans Charwatey.
According to the court, Charwatey’s evidence and the record of proceedings proved that Charwatey had no dealings with the daily affairs of the company and for that matter Dawson and his cronies had used Charwatey’s name to cover up their shady deals.
He said records available abundantly proved that the vessel’s name was changed from MV Benjamin to Adede II as part of efforts by the convicts to cover up what it termed their “ill-fated journey”.
Touching on the other convicts, the court held that the prosecution led sufficient evidence to prove that Isaac, Philip, Li and Xiang helped in offloading cocaine onto the vessel on Liberian waters in March 2006.
With reference to Isaac, the court said it found it strange for a sailor with 20 years’ experience to call a sack and a cloth as cartons and to further lie on oath when he said the cartons he helped to offload contained fish and not cocaine.
It said the defence of innocence put up by Isaac was an afterthought, especially when the prosecution had proved his guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
Turning to Philip, the court said evidence adduced had exposed him of having a guilty mind which he had wanted to cover up.
It further held that the prosecution led evidence to prove that Li and Xing also assisted in offloading the cocaine from two canoes on Liberian waters onto the MV Benjamin.
It said the court had unravelled the role each of the convicts had played in carting the cocaine and for that matter it was satisfied that the prosecution had been able to prove a case against each of them.
Touching on Sheriff’s impounded vehicles, the court said although he was on the run, he had not been charged before it.
It said it, therefore, found it difficult to make formal orders for the vehicles to be impounded.
It also said it could not order the seizure of the vessel because the issue of ownership had arisen and it was not clear whether or not it belonged to Dawson or one Mr Bae.
Counsel for the convicts pleaded for leniency but the court was of the view that the narcotic drug menace in the country was a problem and it was, therefore, important for the court to give deterrent sentences.
Lawyers of the convicts have indicated that they will appeal against their conviction.
Thirteen prosecution witnesses testified against the accused persons in the trial which began in November 2006 and ended in March 2008.