Thursday, October 29, 2009

Court to rule on Chief Director's interdiction

Thursday, October 29, 2009 (Page 3 Lead)

THE Accra Fast High Court will, on Friday, November 27, 2009 decide the lawfulness or otherwise of the interdiction of the Chief Director of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Mr Albert Anthony Ampong.
Mr Ampong is challenging his interdiction, following investigations into allegations of financial impropriety levelled against Alhaji Muntaka Mohammed Mubarak, the former sector minister.
He is also seeking a declaration that an order directed at him to refund $20,000 and a further order that sanctions must be applied against him are unlawful.
But the Attorney-General’s Department described Mr Ampong’s motion as “merely an attempt to hijack the processes of the Civil Service in order to prevent any meaningful enquiry”.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice S. K. Asiedu, fixed the date for ruling after counsel for Mr Ampong, Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame, had moved a motion for judicial review filed against the Attorney-General and the Head of the Civil Service.
There was no legal representation from the Attorney-General’s office.
Mr Dame prayed the court to grant his client’s reliefs, which included a declaration that the decision of the Head of the Civil Service to implement directives from the President was unlawful.
The applicant is further praying the court to quash the decision to interdict him on the grounds that due process had not been followed and, therefore, it was a violation of the relevant laws and disciplinary regulations of the Civil Service of Ghana.
Mr Ampong is additionally seeking an order prohibiting the respondents from imposing any disciplinary sanctions against him on the basis of the National Security report on investigations into allegations against Alhaji Mubarak, as well as praying the court to grant an order of mandamus to compel the Head of the Civil Service to allow him to resume his normal duties as the Chief Director of the ministry, among any other orders the court might deem fit.
According to the applicant, the respondents acted illegally, unreasonably, capriciously, arbitrarily and in an unfair manner.
An affidavit in support of his application stated that he had only been called as a witness before the committee set up to investigate Alhaji Mubarak and not as an accused person.
It said Mr Ampong had testified at the committee, although he had been refused legal representation, adding that he informed the committee that he had advanced $20,000 to Alhaji Mubarak after the money had been advanced to him (Ampong) by the Principal Accountant of the ministry.
According to the affidavit, the Civil Service Council was the disciplinary authority for all civil servants and disciplinary proceedings in cases of misconduct and unsatisfactory service on the part of civil servants and, therefore, a civil servant could be disciplined only in accordance with strict adherence to the Civil Service Act and regulations and accepted principles of fairness, natural justice, the rule of law, among others.
Mr Ampong was ordered to proceed on leave on July 7, 2009 following recommendations by the National Security Committee which investigated financial impropriety levelled against Alhaji Mubarak by the principal accountant of the Sports Ministry.
At the last hearing on October 15, 2009, the application by the Attorney-General's office for extension of time within which to file its affidavit in opposition had not been opposed by counsel for Ampong and was thus granted.
In response to Mr Ampong’s claims, the A-G’s office had held that the President merely directed the Head of the Civil Service to interdict the applicant pending formal hearings by the Civil Service Council to assess the conduct of the applicant after the President had been presented with the preliminary findings by the National Security co-ordinator, adding that the President, according to the A-G, duly exercised his powers under the Civil Service Law, 1993 and the Civil Service Regulations (L.I.47).
The A-G contended that the applicant claimed to have given $10,000 to the then minister but could not produce any receipt or other documentary evidence to establish his claim, adding that after preliminary investigations by the National Security co-ordinator, adverse findings were made against the applicant, the principal accountant and the minister.
The affidavit in opposition pointed out that the interdiction of the applicant was only to prevent him from interfering with investigations which were to be undertaken following his summary interdiction.
The A-G also said a five-member panel had been set up since July 10, 2009 to begin hearing of the applicant's case with the object of determining his guilt or otherwise but the panel had not begun sitting in view of the present court action by the applicant.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

NPP race hots up • 4 Contestants pledge non-alignment

Monday, October 26,2009 (Front Page)

FOUR prominent members of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) — Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, Stephen Ntim, Samuel Crabbe and Felix Owusu-Agyapong — have resolved to contest the national chairmanship of the party on their own merit, without lending themselves to any perceived alliances.
After a critical meeting in Accra last Wednesday involving the top hierarchy of the party, it was affirmed that the regional elections to pave the way for national elections early next year would be held across the country on December 7, 2009.
In separate interviews with the Daily Graphic, some prospective contestants at the national and regional levels resolved to help produce a team more united than ever.
With the battle lines drawn for Messrs Obetsebi-Lamptey, Ntim, Crabbe and Owusu-Agyapong to contest the national chairmanship, party insiders indicated that the regional elections to be held in December posed the real challenge.
At the regional level, the contest between a former envoy to Serbia, Dr Nyaho Nyaho-Tamakloe, and a former Attorney-General, Mr Ayikoi Otoo, for the Greater Accra chairmanship is expected to attract the greatest attention.
Either contestants has been linked to one or another faction in the party but party leaders who spoke to the Daily Graphic over the past week played down the issue.
For his part, Mr Owusu-Agyapong, a former Majority Leader in Parliament, said there was a perceived lack of unity among the rank and file of the party and that caused it to lose the 2008 elections. He added that he would work hard to resolve that issue.
He said he was a personality who appealed to all people in the party, something he had demonstrated through his reconciliatory moves in 1998 that eventually won the party power in 2000.
He said as a former Majority Leader, he had on several occasions been able to bring both the Majority and the Minority Members of Parliament (MPs) together to agree on consensus on very critical national issues, saying that skill would be applied when he became chairman of the NPP to unite all within the party to win the 2012 elections.
According to Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey, his vision was to put the NPP in a position ready and prepared to win power by ensuring that the party’s candidates were elected into office as President and MPs.
He said the NPP failed to win the first round of the 2008 elections because it failed to win majority of seats in Parliament as a result of internal bickering and fighting which, in most cases, resulted in skirt-and-blouse voting.
Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey gave the assurance that as national chairman, he would ensure that members avoided competing in a manner that would make it difficult to work together after internal elections, as well as avoid petty bickering.
Mr Ntim, one of the high-profile members contesting the national chairmanship, denied ever belonging to a faction or supporting any particular person in the party.
He said he was an “independent-minded person who acts according to his own conscience and not according to the dictates of other persons”.
Mr Ntim, who was speaking to the Daily Graphic via telephone, described rumours in 2005 that he was being supported by the then President Kufuor as “giving a dog a bad name in order to hang it”.
He contested the national chairmanship position of the party in 2005 and lost to Mr Peter Mac Manu.
He said those who concocted those untruths about him succeeded in ensuring that he lost the slot, adding, however, that that did not affect his unwavering support and loyalty to the party.
He said others also doubted his loyalty and commitment to the party but the delegates and a large number of the party’s supporters and members had now come to realise the true story and that this time around they would vote massively for him.
Mr Ntim, who used to be a vice chairman of the party before 2005, said despite the loss he suffered, he never failed to support the party in any way he could, including donations to it.
He said as a dyed in the wool NPP member, he actively supported the campaigns of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the NPP presidential candidate for the 2008 elections, and his running mate, Dr Mahamadu Bawumia, till the end.
He said the unity of the party was very crucial to its quest to win political party and that no committed member of the NPP should in any way act to undermine its cohesion, especially those contesting leadership positions at all levels.
“We are in opposition and my vision is to bring the party back to power. I will ensure that whatever it takes for the party to achieve this is provided,” he said
He explained that as chairman, he would work assiduously with other executives and the rank and file to ensure that the members were well equipped with all the necessary resources and motivated to sacrifice to ensure that the party won elections.
According to the road map, to be climaxed with the election of the party’s flag bearer early next year, the party will follow the recently held polling station elections with what it calls “electoral election” before the end of this month to pave the way for the election of constituency executives before the regional elections in December, during which the Greater Accra chairmanship is expected to be the most hotly contested.
Dr Nyaho-Tamakloe has confirmed his interest in the position and proceeded to issue a statement in which he listed a team, including Ms Vivian Gershon, Mr Mike Oquaye (Jnr), Mr Daniel Nii Kwatei Titus-Glover and Alhaji Yusif, as his team members who should be elected to the positions of First Vice-Chairman, Second Vice-Chairman, Regional Secretary and Assistant Regional Secretary, respectively.
Others are Mike Ampong, Regional Organiser; Henry Quartey, Youth Organiser, and Vida Dugbatey, Women’s Organiser.
Mr Otoo is yet to confirm his interest and if he does the Greater Accra regional chairmanship election will be a two-man race.
The position of national general secretary is being contested by Ghana's former Ambassador to Japan, Dr Adjei Barwuah, Mr Kwadwo Owusu-Afriyie, popularly known as Sir John, a Kumasi-based lawyer, and Captain Nkrabeah Effah-Darteh, a former Deputy Minister of the Interior.

Vodafone suit goes to Supreme Court

Saturday, October 24, 2009 (Front Page)

THE Commercial Court hearing the litigation involving the sale of Ghana Telecom (GT) (now Vodafone) yesterday ruled that it was not competent to deal with issues bordering on the constitutionality or otherwise of the sale.
According to the court, it was the sole preserve of the Supreme Court to interpret issues bordering on the Constitution.
Consequently, the Presiding Judge, Mr Justice Henry Kwofie, has decided to refer aspects of the suit which bordered on the constitutionality or otherwise of the sale to the Supreme Court for interpretation.
Mr Justice Kwofie, accordingly, ordered the Attorney-General and GT to furnish the court with a copy of the Sale and Purchase Agreement (SPA) on GT on or before November 3, 2009.
The matter was, accordingly, adjourned to November 23, 2009 for the court to refer specific aspects of the suit which bordered on constitutionality to the Supreme Court for determination.
The plaintiffs in the matter, Professor Agyeman Badu Akosa and five others, sued the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Ghana Telecommunications Company Limited and the Registrar General over the sale of Ghana Telecom to Vodafone.
The other plaintiffs, who are all members of the Convention People’s Party (CPP), are Mr Michael Kosi Dedey, Dr Nii Moi Thompson, Naa Kordai Assimeh, Ms Rhodaline Imoru Ayarna and Mr Kwame Jantuah, and they are calling for a declaration that the sale of GT is inimical to the public interest.
They are, therefore, seeking reliefs from the court, including a declaration that the agreement entered into by the government was not in accordance with due process of law and is, therefore, a nullity.
They are also seeking an order declaring that the forcible grouping of autonomous state institutions established by law — Voltacom, Fibreco, VRA Fibre Network and VRA Fibre Assets — with GT to form the purported Enlarged GT Group was unlawful and, therefore, void and of no legal effect.
The plaintiffs are further praying for an order of perpetual injunction to restrain the government from disposing of its 70 per cent share of GT to Vodafone or any other foreign company without first exploring avenues for funding and better management in Ghana, among others.
Citing authorities to buttress the court’s decision, Mr Justice Kwofie held that both parties had raised issues which bordered on constitutionality and it was, therefore, proper for the court to refer those aspects to the Supreme Court.
He said he would study the SPA, make the necessary referral to the Supreme Court and hear other aspects of the case which did not border on constitutionality.
Declining to vary whether or not an agreement executed by the government and ratified by Parliament could be challenged in the High Court, the court was of the view that that aspect would not prejudice the case in any way.
In the substantive suit, the plaintiffs are contending that the SPA entered into among the Government of Ghana, GT and Vodafone for the sale of 70 per cent of GT for $900 million was against the public interest and constituted an abuse of the discretionary powers of the government.
They said they were opposed to the unlawful establishment of the said Enlarged GT Group, as it undermined the sovereignty of the country and endangered the national security of Ghana.
According to them, the decision of the government to transfer the assets, properties, shares, equipment, among others, to Vodafone was obnoxious, unlawful and inimical to the public interest, particularly when no consideration was required to be paid by Vodafone for the stated assets.
The plaintiffs argued that the three Ministers of State and the managing director of GT who signed the agreement on behalf of the government did not exercise the requisite level of circumspection required of them as public officers in relation to public property.

Friday, October 23, 2009

Court discharges Lamptey Mills • Matter settled out of court

Friday, October 23, 2009 (Page 3 Lead)

THE Circuit Court in Accra today discharged the Proprietor of the Great Lamptey Mills Institute, Mr Enoch Nii Lamptey Mills, who was charged with compulsory marriage.
Mr Mills, alias Mr Tee, allegedly impregnated one of his former students and forced her to marry him at age 16 but he had denied any wrongdoing.
He was discharged alongside two other accused persons namely Georgina Sabah, the victim’s mother and Evelyn Engmann, the victim’s grandmother, who were charged with abetment.
The court arrived at that decision after the victim’s father/complainant in the case, Mr Odartey Lamptey, announced to the court that he had decided to withdraw his complaint against Mr Mills and the others following a resolution of the matter by parties in the case.
The presiding judge, Mrs Georgina Mensah-Datsa accordingly discharged the accused persons after she had held deliberations with the victim in her chambers in the presence of the prosecutor, the complainant and defence counsel.
According to the trial judge, the charge levelled against Mr Mills was a misdemeanor of which the law allowed out of court settlement.
She said she also took into account the fact that the complainant had withdrawn the case against the three as well as the interest of child.
The court emphasized that a criminal matter could not go on without a complainant and further pointed out that the prosecution had not objected to the withdrawal of the matter from the court.
She further stated that the victim had also told her (judge) in the presence of the prosecutor and defence lawyer that she consented to amicable resolution of the matter.
The court concluded that considering the above reasons it was the court’s duty to discharge the accused persons.
Mr Mills, who was clad in an all-white apparel as usual walked out of the courtroom a free man in the company of his sympathisers.
On Monday, Mr Mills and the two others were granted self recognisance bail by the court.
Counsel for Mr Mills, Mr Bannerman Williams, told the court that the parties in the matter had sought an out of court settlement. the offence was a misdemeanor and to add to that the family had taken into account the fact that there was a child between Mr Mills and the victim.
Counsel said the family agreed that the welfare of the child will be better protected and promoted if the matter was resolved out of court.
It accordingly adjourned the matter to today, October 22, 2009 to enable the complainant to respond appropriately.
According to the prosecution, Mr Mills’ relationship with the girl started when he was paying the victim’s school fees after she had informed him that her parents were unable to pay her fees.
He was alleged to have promised to compensate the victim with a building and further promised to take the then yet-to-be-born child to South Africa to for education while the victim would remain in Ghana to continue her education to the university level.
However, Mills had allegedly failed to keep to his promise of building a house for her, providing for the upkeep of the mother and the child, as well as restoring the girl to school a year after the child was born.
Great Lamptey Mills Institute, formerly Lamptey Mills Institute, was established on February 4, 1963 by the late Rev Abraham Samuel Lamptey-Mills after whom the school was named.
The Junior High School Department was later established on September 31, 1994 by the current director of the school, Mr Enoch Lamptey-Mills.
The Senior Secondary Department was also founded in 2005 by the same director.
He was among a number of persons who received national awards last year.

No show in court for 3 high-profile cases • Trial judge on leave

Thursday, October 22, 2009 (Page 3 Lead)

THREE high profile cases involving 10 personalities were today not heard at the Fast Track High Court because the trial judge is on leave.
The cases which involves a former Minister of Information, Stephen Asamoah-Boateng aka Asabee, his wife, Zuleika and six others over GH¢86,915.85 renovation works at the ministry as well as the former Managing Director of the National Investment Bank (NIB), Daniel Charles Gyimah, were adjourned to November 23, 2009.
A third case, which involves the Chief Executive of Exopa Modelling Agency, Sima Ibrahim, was adjourned for two weeks as required under the new High Court rules.
The rules stipulate that persons on remand must not be remanded for more than two weeks.
Sources said the trial judge, Mr Justice Charles Quist, who was hearing these cases during the vacation period as a vacation judge had taken his annual leave.
Sources said the judge was due to resume work in December 2009.
Asabee and his wife are standing trial with a former Deputy Information Minister, Frank Agyekum, Kofi Asamoah-Boateng, a former Director of Finance and Administration at the Ministry of Information; Kwabena Denkyira, a former Deputy Director of Finance and Administration at the ministry; Yasmin Domua, a manageress; Prosper Aku of Supreme Procurement Agency Ltd and the company as an entity.
They are facing various charges relating to conspiracy, attempt to commit criminal offence, to wit defrauding by false pretences, forgery of official documents, possession of forged documents, uttering of forged documents and deceit of public officers.
All the accused persons have pleaded not guilty to the charges and have been admitted to bail in the sum of GH¢ 10,000 with a surety.
Counsel for the former minister, denied that the contract did not follow the due process of law since the right procedures were adhered to.
In the case of the former NIB Boss, he (Gyimah) and the Managing Director of Eland International Ghana Limited, Arvind Kumar Bhartnagor have been jointly charged with conspiracy to defraud.
Other charges preferred against them are attempting to defraud the international banking community and three counts of forgery of documents including reports on goods under the control of the NIB for Eland.
In the third case, Ibrahim, was alleged to have attempted to export substances believed to be narcotic drugs.
Ibrahim, 39, was arrested at the Kotoka International Airport about 11 p.m. on September 7, 2009 while he was going through departure formalities to travel to Germany.
The prosecution told the court that the accused person is also a model and that he had arrived at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) on September 7, 2009 to board a flight to Germany.
According to the prosecution, while the accused person was going through departure formalities, officials of the Narcotic Control Board (NACOB) suspected him of carrying narcotic drugs and subsequently invited him for interrogation and it was during the search that the four tubers of yam containing narcotic drugs were found.
He is currently on remand in police custody.

Cocaine: Prosecutor flies to Equador

Saturday, October 17, 2009 (Page 3)

THE investigator in the case involving six persons charged with illegally importing 71.45 kilogrammes of cocaine into the country is in Equador to conduct further investigations.
Augustina Abu, the importer; Yaw Attah Nkansah, a clearing agent; Alfred Amedzi, the Managing Director of Sedco Agency; Kennedy Osei and Simon Bede, both directors of Sedco Agency, and Francis Addo, a driver, are being held for importing narcotic drugs suspected to be cocaine into the country and engaging in criminal conspiracy.
They have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
At the court’s sitting in Accra yesterday, the prosecutor, Ms Cynthia Lamptey, a Chief State Attorney, told the court that the investigator was off to Equador to conduct further investigations into the case and for that matter the prosecution needed a month’s adjournment.
Her plea was met with a quick rejection from defence lawyers who did not take the prosecution’s prayer kindly.
They accused the prosecution of causing an unreasonable delay in the case which, in turn, abused the rights of the accused persons.
They, therefore, prayed the court to grant their clients bail.
However, the court was of the view that there had not been any unreasonable delay in the case.
The trial judge, Mr Justice C. J. Honyenugah, an Appeal Court judge sitting with additional responsibility as a High Court judge, said the accused persons had been in custody for five months and the court did not consider that as a delay.
He also reminded the defence lawyers to be mindful of the fact that the law did not allow bail to be granted to persons charged on narcotic offences.
The court, therefore, maintained its position of not granting bail to the accused persons.
Mr Justice Honyenugah also directed the prosecution to furnish the court with evidence of the investigator’s travel to ensure fairness.
The matter was adjourned to November 16, 2009.
The accused persons had earlier been put before Mrs Justice Irismay Brown, a Court of Appeal judge, who admitted them to bail.
However, the prosecution filed a nolle prosequi, re-arrested the accused persons and later put them before Mr Justice Honyenugah.
The facts of the case are that on May 15, this year, the M/V Maersk Nolanville docked at the Tema Port with containers from Ecuador, Panama and Spain.
The prosecution said among the containers was one with number MSAU0118160 manifested to contain 1,880 cartons of chewing gum imported by Ms Abu of Augustina Abu Enterprise.
The prosecutor said personnel of the Joint Port Control Unit (JPCU), made up officers from the Narcotics Control Board, the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS), the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA) and the Police Service tagged the said container, which meant that it could only be opened by JPCU officers.
About 3:30 p.m. on May 19, the container was scanned and the image disclosed that it contained some other objects in addition to its official cargo.
During a thorough examination, two bags containing 61 slabs of a whitish substance suspected to be cocaine were found among the cartons of chewing gum.
A test of the substance indicated that it was cocaine.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Nii Lamptey Mills granted bail

Tuesday, October 20, 2009 (Page 3 Lead)

THE Circuit Court in Accra today granted self recognisance bail to the Proprietor of the Great Lamptey Mills Institute, Enoch Nii Lamptey Mills, who has been charged with compulsory marriage.
Mills, alias Mr Tee, allegedly impregnated one of his former students and forced her to marry him at age 16 but he had denied any wrongdoing.
He appeared before the court alongside two other accused persons namely Georgina Sabah, the victim’s mother and Evelyn Engmann, the victim’s grandmother, who were charged with abetment.
The two women were also granted self recognisance bail by the court, presided over by Mrs Georgina Mensah-Datsa.
Reporters were subjected to unprintable insults by Georgina. She openly cursed the reporters and said each of them would die if they went ahead to publish her trial.
She questioned reporters whether they went to journalism school only to end up covering her trial.
She further threatened to slap a male reporter but the reporters ignored her and went about their duties.
Georgina, cursed the reporters both inside and outside the courtroom. She was, however, restrained by Mills who was clad in an all white linen apparel.
Mills’ left the Cocoa Affairs Court premises around 11.45 am in the company of friends and sympathisers after he had signed his bail bond.
Earlier, counsel for Mills, Mr Bannerman Williams, informed the court that the victim’s family had met on the issue and the family had agreed to settle the matter out of court.
According to counsel, the offence was a misdemeanour and to add to that the family had taken into account the fact that there was a child between Mills and the victim.
Counsel said the family agreed that the welfare of the child will be better protected and promoted if the matter was resolved out of court.
After his submissions, the trial judge questioned the whereabouts of the complainant in the case but the prosecutor said the complainant was not available.
The matter was stood down for about 20 minutes but the complainant did not show up when the matter was called again.
In reply to defence counsel’s submission, the trial judge held that the head of the family, who had written a letter for an out of court settlement was not present when the offence was committed.
The court was also of the view that the complainant had not seen a copy of the letter and it was therefore, prudent for the complainant to made aware of developments.
It accordingly adjourned the matter to Thursday, October 22, 2009.
The accused person looked composed as usual when he appeared in court in the company of his lawyer.
According to the prosecution, the Mills’ relationship with the girl started when he was paying the victim’s school fees after she had informed him that her parents were unable to pay her fees.
He was alleged to have promised to compensate the victim with a building and further promised to take the then yet-to-be-born child to South Africa to for education while the victim would remain in Ghana to continue her education to the university level.
However, Mills had allegedly failed to keep to his promise of building a house for her, providing for the upkeep of the mother and the child, as well as restoring the girl to school a year after the child was born.
Great Lamptey-Mills Institute, formerly Lamptey-Mills Institute, was established on February 4, 1963 by the late Rev Abraham Samuel Lamptey-Mills after whom the school was named.
The Junior High School Department was later established on September 31, 1994 by the current director of the school, Mr Enoch Lamptey-Mills.
The Senior Secondary Department was also founded in 2005 by the same director.
He was among a number of persons who received national awards last year.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Ex-minister, MD on financial loss charge

Thursday, October 15, 2009 (Page 3 Lead)

A former Minister of Foreign Affairs and the former Managing Director of the National Investment Bank (NIB) were yesterday put before the Financial Division of the Fast Track High Court, charged with wilfully causing financial loss to the state.
Mr Akwasi Osei-Adjei and Mr Daniel Charles Gyimah were alleged to have acted together to steal 2,997 bags of rice, valued at US$1,408,590, but lawyers for the accused persons have argued that diplomatic efforts embarked upon by the accused persons to solve the food shortage in the country had been “criminalised”.
The two were charged with eight counts of conspiracy, contravention of provisions of the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663), using public office for profit, stealing and wilfully causing financial loss to the state.
They pleaded not guilty to the charges and were each admitted to bail in the sum of GH¢200,000 with two sureties each to be justified.
Clarifying the bail conditions, the court ordered that the sureties should be immovable properties valued at GH¢1 million. It also ordered that the title deeds covering the immovable properties must be deposited at the court’s registry until otherwise directed by the court.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Bright Mensah, further ordered the accused persons to report themselves once a week to the investigator in charge of the case.
It, however, declined to order them to deposit their passports, as requested by Mr Anthony Gyambiby, a Chief State Attorney, on the grounds that it was a subject matter at the Court of Appeal.
The court had earlier granted bail in the sum of GH¢2 million to each of the accused persons but counsel for Mr Osei-Adjei, Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame, prayed the court to vary it, to which the court obliged.
The bail was granted after Mr Dame and counsel for Mr Gyimah, Colonel Alex Johnson (retd), had prayed the court to grant their clients bail, since they were men of repute who would avail themselves for trial.
The matter was adjourned to November 4, 2009 for hearing.
The facts of the case were that some time in February 2008 a former Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Joe Baidoo-Ansah, initiated the importation of rice from India and in a letter dated February 13, 2008 the said minister requested the Government of India, through the High Commission of India in Ghana, to buy 100,000 metric tonnes of (25 - 35 per cent) broken rice.
According to the prosecution, the rice was to arrive in Ghana by May 2008 to help curb the severe increases in the prices of staples in Ghana, while the Ghana National Procurement Agency (GNPA) was the designated consignee.
It said Mr Baidoo-Ansah, in another letter dated April 10, 2008 and addressed to the Minister of External Affairs of India, referred to an earlier meeting held between former President John Agyekum Kufuor and the Minister of Commerce of India and drew attention to the "severe food situation looming in Ghana" and sought to procure from the Government of India 300,000 metric tonnes of low grade white 25 per cent broken rice for shipment to Ghana by June 2008.
In April 2008, Mr Osei-Adjei took over the effort by Mr Baidoo-Ansah and nominated the NIB as the sole consignee. In the process, the NIB, represented by Mr Gyimah, negotiated the terms of the contract with the State Trading Corporation of India through the Ghana High Commission in India.
The prosecution said Ghana’s High Commissioner to India was instructed by Mr Osei-Adjei to sign the contract on behalf of the Government of Ghana, the High Commission and NIB.
The contract was executed and 15,000 metric tonnes (300,000 bags) of rice of 25 per cent broken was to be shipped by Amira Foods Limited (AFL) of India, a private shipping company. The consignment arrived at the Tema Harbour on February 18, 2009.
Initially, the importation of the rice to Ghana was supposed to be a grant but it later turned into a commercial transaction and for that matter Mr Gyimah approached Citibank to issue letters of credit to cover the value of the consignment.
It said on the arrival of the rice, efforts by the NIB to get tax exemption from the Ministry of Finance, which was side-stepped during the transaction, was turned down due to the commercial nature of the transaction.
According to the prosecution, a physical count of the rice revealed a shortage of 2,997 bags, adding that the remaining rice was in varying states of wholesomeness.
The prosecution further stated that investigations conducted into the importation of the rice revealed that provisions of the Public Procurement Act had been side-stepped, adding that the 2,997 missing bags were short-landed and diverted for sale for huge private profit.
The prosecution said it would lead evidence to prove the guilt of the accused persons but their counsel also argued that they would, in the course of the trial, prove the innocence of their clients.

Lamptey-Mills before Court

Wednesday, October 14, 2009 (Front Page)

THE Proprietor of the Great Lamptey Mills Institute, Mr Enoch Nii Lamptey Mills, yesterday appeared before the Accra Circuit Court charged with compulsory marriage.
Mr Mills, alias Mr Tee, allegedly impregnated one of his former students and forced her to marry him at age 16.
The accused person, who wore a white linen shirt over a white linen pair of trousers, looked composed when he appeared in court in the company of his lawyer.
The matter was, however, heard in camera at the chambers of the trial judge, Mrs Georgina Datsa-Mensah.
According to sources, the victim’s mother and another person whose name and identity were not disclosed have also been charged along with Mr Mills.
Sources close to the case told journalists that Mr Mills, who is currently on police enquiry bail, is expected to reappear next week.
Although Mr Mills had come out to publicly deny knowledge of any case against him, records at the Ministries Police Station indicated that he was arrested on September 9, 2009 and released the following day.
According to the sources, Mr Mills allegedly promised to compensate the victim with a building but he told the police that the building he had promised the girl was at the roofing level.
Mr Mills, they said, also allegedly promised to take the then yet-to-be-born child to South Africa to educate it there, while the mother would remain in Ghana to continue her education to the university level.
They said the accused person’s relationship with the girl started when he was paying the victim’s school fees after she had informed him that her parents were unable to pay her fees.
The Daily Graphic, in its September 11, 2009 issue, reported Mr Mills’s arrest by the police for impregnating and forcing to marry the girl.
One year after the girl had been delivered of a baby, Mr Mills had allegedly failed to keep to his promise of building a house for her, providing for the upkeep of the mother and the child, as well as restoring the girl to school.
Great Lamptey-Mills Institute, formerly Lamptey-Mills Institute, was established on February 4, 1963 by the late Rev Abraham Samuel Lamptey-Mills after whom the school was named.
The Junior High School Department was later established on September 31, 1994 by the current director of the school, Mr Enoch Lamptey-Mills.
The Senior Secondary Department was also founded in 2005 by the same director.
He was among a number of persons who received national awards last year.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

'Dismiss A-G's motion'

Tuesday, October 13, 2009 (Centre Spread)

LAWYERS of former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Akwasi Osei-Adjei, have called on the Court of Appeal to dismiss the Attorney-General Department's motion for stay of execution of a High Court's ruling which ordered the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) to release the passport of Mr Akwasi Osei-Adjei.
According to the lawyers, the Deputy Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Ebow Barton-Odro, misled the court on October 7, 2009 when he informed the court that he had since September 17, 2009 applied for a copy of the ruling and therefore needed an adjournment when on the face of the record, he had not done that.
“That as borne out by an enquiry conducted by our law firm at the Registry of the court below, it is utterly untrue that the Attorney-General’s Department had applied for a copy of the ruling by the court below as at the time the Deputy Attorney-General appeared before this Honourable Court and made statements to that effect,” a supplementary affidavit in opposition to the A-G Department's application for stay of execution said.
The court had, on October 7, 2009, adjourned the case indefinitely but a search conducted by lawyers for Mr Osei-Adjei revealed that Mr Barton-Odro had on October 7, 2009 applied for a copy of the lower court's ruling after he had appeared at the Court of Appeal on that day.
"That the falsehood apparent from the statements by the learned Deputy Attorney-General clearly epitomises the falsehood with which all the depositions in the applicant's affidavit is laced and was a deliberate attempt to frustrate the hearing of the instant application," the supplementary affidavit in opposition to the A-G Department's application for stay of execution said.
The Court of Appeal, on Friday, October 7, 2009, adjourned indefinitely to enable the Attorney-General’s (A-G’s) Department to receive a certified copy of the ruling of the Human Rights Division of the High Court which refused to stay its earlier order directing the BNI to release Mr Osei-Adjei’s passport.
Mr Barton-Odro prayed the court to adjourn the matter to enable his outfit to receive a certified copy of the lower court’s ruling which refused to stay execution of its earlier order.
Mr Osei-Adjei sued the Director of the BNI and the Attorney-General for the seizure of his passport and described the action as “flagrantly unlawful and a palpable violation” of his human rights.
He sought an order directed at the Director of the BNI to release his passport unconditionally, but the A-G’s Department held a different view and said the detention of Mr Osei-Adjei's passport was on the grounds that the BNI was mandated, under the Security and Intelligence Agencies Act (Act 526), to investigate him.
The court had, on Tuesday, August 11, 2009, ruled that the BNI did not have the power to seize the former minister’s passport, adding that the action violated his fundamental human rights because it did not follow the due process of law.
The court, however, struck out the suit against the Director of the BNI, saying that the functions of the BNI made it a state institution whose acts were carried out on behalf of the Republic and, therefore, was not properly sued.
However, the A-G’s office filed an appeal against the court’s decision and, accordingly, filed another motion praying the court to stay execution of its order pending the outcome of its appeal.
However, on September 15, 2009, the Human Rights Court dismissed the application filed by the A-G to stay execution of the order to the BNI to release Mr Osei-Adjei’s passport to him.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice U.P. Dery, described as untenable the argument by the A-G that if the former minister was given his passport there was the likelihood that he would interfere with the investigations.

Monday, October 12, 2009

Attorney-General justifies trip

Monday, October 12, 2009 (Centre Spread)

THE Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mrs Betty Mould-Iddrisu, has described as “unwarranted and negative” assertions by her critics that her trip to the United Kingdom to gather relevant information on the Mabey & Johnson bribery case was a waste of national resources.
She said, “This type of negation does not go well for the continuous working of the rule of law.”
“My visit was extremely useful and enabled the President to take certain decisions in an informed manner in respect of the way forward on the Mabey & Johnson matter,” the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice emphasised.
Disagreeing with claims by the Alliance For Accountable Governance (AFAG), a political pressure group, that her trip would not yield any independent findings, Mrs Mould-Iddrisu told the Daily Graphic in an interview that such assertions were false.
According to her, the Attorney-General was a national competent authority and any dealings in international criminal matters between sovereign countries should go through competent national authorities.
She, therefore, stated that President John Evans Atta Mills did the most appropriate thing by directing her to travel to the UK to gather the relevant information on the bribery allegations.
Further justifying her trip to the UK from October 5 to October 7, 2009, Mrs Mould-Iddrisu stated that any agency from a different country seeking assistance on information under the mutual, “Legal Assistance Scheme can only do so through the respective national authorities”.
Touching on the referral of the matter to the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), the Attorney-General said “as I understand it, the CHRAJ is looking into the allegations under the laws of Ghana alone”.
Asked the way forward following the resignations of the two ministers and the subsequent handling of the matter by the CHRAJ, Mrs Mould-Iddrisu said, “I will continue to engage competent UK authorities and other relevant bodies until the final resolution of the matter.”
Mabey & Johnson, a construction firm, had claimed in a court in London that it had paid bribes to influence the award of contracts in Ghana in the early 1990s.
The Ghanaian officials mentioned in the alleged scandal include Dr George Yankey, the Minister of Health, who resigned last Friday. He was then a director at the Ministry of Finance.
The other mentioned officials are Alhaji Amadu Seidu, a Minister of State at the Castle, who was also a Deputy Minister of Roads and Highways in the 1990s. He also tendered in his resignation last Friday.
The rest are Dr Ato Quarshie, who was a Minister of Roads and Highways; Alhaji Boniface Abubakar Siddique, a Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing in the Kufuor administration who was a director at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning at the time of the alleged scandal, and one Mr Edward Attipoe.
Following the allegations of bribery, President J.E.A. Mills directed Mrs Mould-Iddrisu to gather the relevant information from the UK authorities on the claim in a court in London by Mabey and Johnson that it had paid bribes to influence the award of contracts in Ghana in the early 1990s.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Exopa CEO's case adjourned to Oct 12

October 8, 2009 (Page 3)

THE trial of the Chief Executive Officer of Exopa Modelling Agency, Sima Ibrahim, for allegedly attempting to export substances believed to be narcotic was yesterday adjourned to October 12, 2009.
The adjournment resulted from the fact that the court hearing the case did not sit.
A crowd, many of whom included models of his agency, thronged the court premises to show solidarity.
Court clerks gave the new date to prosecutors and counsel for the accused person.
On September 23, 2009, the prosecution had sought an adjournment to await the final report on the suspected substances which were found on Ibrahim from the Ghana Standards Board (GSB) but counsel for the accused person, Mr Kwame Boafo Akuffo, did not take kindly to the adjournment, saying that at the previous sitting the court had been made aware that investigations had been completed to pave way for the case to proceed.
Ibrahim is in prison custody on two counts of attempted exportation of narcotic drugs and possession of narcotic drugs without licence.
He has pleaded not guilty to the charges at the Accra Fast Track High Court.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Charles Quist, ordered the police to continue to hold a Range Rover vehicle, which they impounded from the residence of the model, until otherwise directed.
Ibrahim, 39, was arrested at the Kotoka International Airport about 11 p.m. on September 7, 2009 while he was going through departure formalities to travel to Germany.
The prosecution told the court that the accused person is also a model and that he had arrived at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) on September 7, 2009 to board a flight to Germany.
According to the prosecution, while the accused person was going through departure formalities, officials of the Narcotic Control Board (NACOB) suspected him of carrying narcotic drugs and subsequently invited him for interrogation.
It said the NACOB officials called for the accused person’s bag and when it was searched, four tubers of yam were found in it and that aroused their suspicion.
The prosecution told the court that when the tubers of yam were examined, it was detected that they had been cut open and five kilogrammes of a whitish substance suspected to be narcotic drugs concealed in them.
It stated that the accused person admitted ownership of the yams and said they had been given to him by someone he named as Salifu for delivery to another person in Germany for a fee of 3,000 Euros.
It said when the accused person’s residence was searched, items including a bread knife and glue suspected to have been used by him were retrieved.

Osei-Adjei's case adjourned indefinitely

October 8, 2009 (Page 3 Lead)

THE Court of Appeal yesterday adjourned indefinitely the appeal filed by the Attorney-General for stay of execution of a High Court order directing the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) to release the passport of Mr Akwasi Osei-Adjei, a former Minister of Foreign Affairs, to him.
The matter was adjourned to enable the Attorney-General’s (A-G’s) Department to receive a certified copy of the ruling of the Human Rights Division of the High Court which refused to stay its earlier order directing the BNI to release Mr Osei-Adjei’s passport.
At the court’s sitting in Accra yesterday, the Deputy Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Ebow Barton-Oduro, prayed the court to adjourn the matter to enable his outfit to receive a certified copy of the lower court’s ruling which refused to stay execution of its earlier order.
The court, accordingly, adjourned the matter indefinitely. A new date will be fixed as soon as the Attorney-General’s Department receives a copy of the lower court’s ruling.
Mr Osei-Adjei sued the Director of the BNI and the Attorney-General for the seizure of his passport and described the action as “flagrantly unlawful and a palpable violation” of his human rights.
He sought an order directed at the Director of the BNI to release his passport unconditionally, but the A-G’s Department held a different view and said the detention of Mr Osei-Adjei's passport was on the grounds that the BNI was mandated, under the Security and Intelligence Agencies Act (Act 526), to investigate him.
The court had, on Tuesday, August 11, 2009, ruled that the BNI did not have the power to seize the former minister’s passport, adding that the action violated his fundamental human rights because it did not follow the due process of law.
The court, however, struck out the suit against the Director of the BNI, saying that the functions of the BNI made it a state institution whose acts were carried out on behalf of the Republic and, therefore, was not properly sued.
However, the A-G’s office filed an appeal against the court’s decision and, accordingly, filed another motion praying the court to stay execution of its order pending the outcome of its appeal.
However, on September 15, 2009, the Human Rights Court dismissed the application filed by the A-G to stay execution of the order to the BNI to release Mr Osei-Adjei’s passport to him.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice U.P. Dery, described as untenable the argument by the A-G that if the former minister was given his passport there was the likelihood that he would interfere with the investigations.