Wednesday, August 25, 2010

I wont apologise to judge - Odro

Wednesday, August 25, 2010 (Front Page)

THE Deputy Attorney-General, Mr Ebo Barton-Odro, says under no circumstance will he apologise to Mr Justice Anthony Oppong, a High Court judge who accused him of calling him a drunkard.
“His demand that I apologise is completely out of place,” Mr Barton-Odro stated, and questioned, “Is it not strange for him to demand an apology after recusing himself from the case?”
“I would not render any apology. Not today, not tomorrow. Never. His swipe at me and lawyers at the Attorney-General’s Department was most unfortunate and unbecoming of a judge,” Mr Barton-Odro stated in an interview with the Daily Graphic.
Responding to the judge’s demand for an apology and a retraction of his claims that there was the possibility of bias on his part in the case in which 14 suspects were before him for the murder of the late overlord of Dagbon, Mr Barton-Odro said nowhere did he state that Mr Justice Oppong was a drunk.
“I am challenging him (Justice Oppong) to produce a recording of my alleged radio interviews in which I accused him of being a drunk,” Mr Barton-Odro threw back the challenge at the judge who had on Monday recused himself and dared the Deputy Attorney-General to substantiate claims that he the trial judge was a drunk.
Mr Barton-Odro explained that he granted radio interviews on the matter and in one or two of the interviews he was asked under what circumstance a lawyer would ask a trial judge to recuse himself on the basis of bias to which he expounded that a lawyer could do that if he found the trial judge having a drink with an opponent in a case.
On Monday, Mr Justice Oppong took a swipe at the Deputy Attorney-General and his outfit and said he felt unsafe in handling the case in view of what was happening in the country in respect of allegations of bias, particularly threats from the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) Chairman, Dr Kwabena Adjei.
He then urged the Chief Justice to transfer the matter from his court.
However, Mr Barton-Odro stated that there was no point for Mr Justice Oppong to feel unsafe because nobody was after his life and for that reason “there was no need for him to make such loose statements”.
Defending lawyers at the A-G’s office, Mr Barton-Odro said the lawyers were not stooges but professionals who knew how to go about their work with competence and due diligence.
According to Mr Barton-Odro, his claims that the trial judge sat at the Airforce Officers Mess in Takoradi to make prejudicial statements on the Ya-Na case was factual and not shameful as Mr Justice Oppong wanted the public to believe.
He said Mr Justice Oppong should have stayed on and challenged him to produce evidence to the effect that the judge had made prejudicial statements and if in the process he was not able to prove those allegations then the trial judge could go ahead and demand an apology.
Under the circumstance, the Deputy Attorney-General said it was very weird for Mr Justice Oppong to rush and recuse himself only to turn around and demand an apology.
The Deputy Minister of Justice also stated that there was no point for him to produce evidence to his claims because the trial judge had already recused himself from the case.
“If he had stayed on and challenged me to produce evidence to my claims, the battle lines would then have been drawn,” Mr Barton-Odro pointed out.
According to Mr Barton-Odro, it was most unfortunate for Mr Justice Oppong to conclude that because he had not received a copy of the motion paper which was challenging his neutrality, the A-G’s department had not filed that paper.
He said the paper was filed last Friday and all that the trial judge should have done as part of normal legal practice was to demand for a copy of the application and if at that point the A-G’s office was not able to produce any document to prove that the paper had been filed then he (the judge) could go ahead and state what was on his mind.
In the substantive matter, the 14 accused persons are on remand awaiting the Chief Justice to appoint another judge to hear their case.
On June 28, 2010, six of them, Alhaji Baba Abdulai Iddrisu, aka Zohe, Kwame Alhassan, aka Achiri, Mohamadu Abdulai, aka Samasama, Sayibu Mohammed, Alhassan Braimah and Alhaji Mohammed Habib Tijani, 45, a former District Chief Executive (DCE) for Yendi during the New Patriotic Party (NPP) regime, were indicted at the Adjabeng Magistrate’s Court in Accra.
Iddrisu Iddi, who was on admission at the Police Hospital in Accra at the last adjourned date, later appeared in court and was also committed to the High Court for trial.
And on July 15, 2010, the rest of the suspects were also committed for trial at the Accra High Court by the Adjabeng Magistrate’s Court, presided over by Ms Patricia Quansah.
They included Alhassan Mohammed, alias Mohammed Cheampon, Abukari Nabeli, aka Kunkakums or Kooms, Mohammed Mustapha, Yakubu Yusif, aka Leftee, Abdul Razak Yussif, aka Nyaa, and Shani Imoro.
The prosecution has stated that evidence would be led to show that Nabeli, who had held two used lorry tyres at the time of the incident, put them on the body of the Ya-Na, while Mustapha held a gallon of petrol on the body to set it ablaze.
It said Yusif had also held a gun by the body and that Yakubu had been seen with a chainsaw machine.
Abdul Yussif, the prosecution stated, had also been seen holding a camera and taking pictures of the scene and that after all that, another group of men, including the suspects, led by Iddi, had drummed, sung and danced around the burning body.
According to the prosecution, evidence would be led to prove that the accused persons played various roles which resulted in the death of the Ya-Na and 30 of his elders on March 27, 2002.

Months of oil stand-off now over - KOSMOS MAKES U-TURN • Terminates sales, purchase accord with Exxonmobil

August 19, 2010 (Lead Story)

AFTER months of a "silent stand-off" between Kosmos Energy and the government over the proposed sale of a $4 billion stake in the Jubilee oilfields to Exxonmobil, Kosmos yesterday announced the termination of the relevant sale and purchase agreement.
It appears Kosmos Energy's stake in the Jubilee oilfields is now open to any company which is interested in the purchase of the oilfields should Kosmos Energy put up the oilfields for sale again.
By a letter dated August 17, 2010 and addressed to the Minister of Energy, the President and Chief Operating Officer of Kosmos Energy, Mr Brian F. Maxted, said “Kosmos Energy Ghana HC (”KEG”) wishes to advise that the sale and Purchase Agreement between KEG, Kosmos Energy Operating and ExxonMobil Exploration and Production Ghana Limited, dated June 28, 2010, has been terminated.”
Another letter dated August 18, 2010 and signed by the Corporate Affairs Manager, Kosmos Energy, Ghana Limited, Mr George Sarpong, said, "Kosmos Energy announces that the agreement with Exxonmobil related to the acquisition of our Ghana business has been terminated. As operator of West Cape Three Points Block, we will continue to work with our block partners and the government of Ghana to develop the Mahogany East and Odum discoveries."
Mr Sarpong’s statement went on to state that the first oil from the Jubilee fields phase one development was fast approaching and the company looked forward to a fruitful and long-term relationship with Ghana.
But when reached by Graphic for further comments, Mr Sarpong declined to state the reason for the termination of the agreement, pointing out that what was important was that Kosmos Energy was looking forward to a fruitful relationship with the government and its partners in the Jubilee oilfields.
Kosmos entered into the sale and purchase agreement with Exxonmobil in June 2010 before seeking the government's ratification. But the government declined on the grounds that Kosmos Energy should have given the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) the first option to purchase the company's shares before entering into the agreement with Exxonmobil or any other company.
The government also accused the oil company of disclosing data on the oilfields to more than 17 potential buyers contrary to the terms and conditions of its agreement with the government, but the oil company declined to make any public statement on the government accusations.
Despite the government's refusal to recognise the agreement between Kosmos Energy and Exxonmobil, the two oil companies appeared not to be prepared to renege on their agreement until the August 17, 2010 letter.
The Minister of Energy, Dr Joe Oteng-Agyei, to whom the letter was addressed, confirmed that he had received it, adding that "we respect their decision".
He also denied assertions from critics that the government had put pressure on Kosmos Energy to back out of the agreement with Exxonmobil.
The question he posed was "why would government put pressure on an investor who is exercising his rights?" and went on to state that "the government never put pressure on Kosmos Energy to sell neither did it put pressure on the company to terminate its agreement with Exxonmobil."
Dr Oteng-Agyei maintained that the government's position was that the laws of the country must be obeyed and the fact that it insisted on the right thing to be done did not mean it was up against Kosmos Energy or any investor.
The minister explained that Kosmos Energy terminated its agreement with Exxonmobil at a time the government was looking into recommendations from a committee which was set up to look into Kosmos Energy's proposal on the sale of its stake in the Jubilee oilfields.
He gave an assurance that the issues would not affect the development of the oilfields in anyway and further pointed out that the government would continue to work with Kosmos Energy and other partners "to ensure that we get our first oil by the last quarter of the year to maximise the benefit to the people of Ghana".
For his part, the Public Affairs Manager of the GNPC, Mr Kwame Ntow Amoah, told the Daily Graphic that the GNPC was still interested in purchasing Kosmos Energy's stake if the company was still interested in selling.
He also intimated that the GNPC, a partner in the Jubilee oilfields, was not in anyway forcing Kosmos Energy to sell its stake.
Kosmos Energy and its partners discovered oil in commercial quantities at the West Cape Three Points in June 2007.
Other partners in the Jubilee oilfields are Tullow Oil Ghana Limited, Anardarko, Sabre Oil, E. O Group and the GNPC.
The Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel which is expected to produce, store and offload the oil at the Jubilee oilfields has berthed in Ghana’s waters.
Ghana is expected to begin commercial production of oil by the last quarter of this year.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Court adjourns Bawku MP's nationality case

August 10, 2010 (Page 3 Lead)

THE nationality case involving the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bawku Central, Adamu Daramani Sakande, was yesterday adjourned to August 23, 2010 to enable a defence witness to appear before the court.
The MP was expected to open his defence and answer three charges out of nine levelled against him with respect to his nationality at the Fast Track High Court’s sitting in Accra yesterday but his lawyer, Mr Egbert Faibille Jnr, told the court that his client was not in a position to open his defence because the defence planned to call what he termed a “star witness”.
However, according to counsel, the star witness, whose evidence was very crucial in the case, was not available at the moment and for that reason the court should adjourn the case to a day in October 2010.
But the trial judge, Mr Justice Charles Quist, explained that he would be on leave during that period.
A Chief State Attorney, Mr Rexford Owiredu, opposed Mr Faibille’s plea and stated that since the MP was present in court, he could go ahead and open his defence while waiting for his witness.
Mr Faibille opposed the prosecutor’s suggestion and reminded the prosecution that it could not determine how the defence should proceed with its case.
The court had, on July 8, 2010, ordered the MP to open his defence on the following counts: False declaration of office or voting, contrary to Section 248 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960, Act 29; perjury, contrary to Section 210 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960, Act 29, and deceiving a public officer, contrary to Section 252 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960, Act 29.
According to the court, the prosecution had been able to prove that the MP, in October 2008, made a false declaration, as well as committed perjury and deceived a public officer, when he swore an oath to the effect that he owed allegiance to no country other than Ghana, contrary to evidence that his British passport would expire in 2014.
Ruling on a "submission of no case" filed on behalf of the MP by his lawyers, Mr Justice Quist held that the defence team failed to establish that the accused person was not a Ghanaian and there was, therefore, no point in ordering the MP to answer charges relating to his entering the country in 2001, among others.
The court, after careful scrutiny of the evidence led by the prosecution, subsequently acquitted and discharged Sakande on six counts of prohibited immigrant, contrary to Section 8 (2) of the Immigration Act, 2000, Act 573, and forgery of passport or travel certificate, contrary to Section 15 of the Passports and Travel Certificates Act, 1967, NLCD 155.
Acquitting the accused person on the charge of entering the country as a prohibited immigrant, the court held that the Constitution and the Representation of the People's Amendment Act now allowed persons to hold dual citizenship titles, as well as vote on that status.
Touching on the charge of forgery of document, the court held that the prosecution failed to prove that the MP forged documents in February 2001 with the intent to contravene the immigration laws of Ghana.
Sakande has pleaded not guilty to all the charges and the court has admitted him to bail in the sum of GH¢10,000 with a surety.
The MP was, on July 31, last year, arraigned before the Accra Fast Track High Court, charged with nine counts relating to his nationality, perjury, forgery of passport, election fraud, as well as deceiving public officers to be elected as an MP.
The complainant in the case, Mr Sumaila Biebel, had, on January 19, 2010, told the court that he had met the MP in London in 1998 and it was during a chat with him that the MP had told him that he (the MP) was a native of Bawku, as well as a British national.

NRSC ordered to file defence in GH¢6 m suit

August 6, 2010 (Page 3)

THE Commercial Court in Accra has ordered the National Road Safety Commission (NRSC) to file its defence in a GH¢6 million suit brought against it by a private printing firm.
Dismissing a motion to set aside a suit issued against it by the Safeway Printing Works Limited for failing to pay for supplied customised road safety equipment, the court held that there was no merit in the NRSC’s motion.
The court, presided over by Mrs Justice Gifty Dekyem, therefore, awarded GH¢300 costs against the NRSC in favour of the plaintiff.
In the substantive suit, Safeway Printing is claiming GH¢6 million, being the unpaid cost of 500,000 pieces of customised advanced double function warning triangles it supplied to the NRSC.
The plaintiff is also claiming GH¢161,240, being money paid to the NRSC at its request to finance various media campaigns for the advanced warning triangle.
It is also praying the court to order the defendant to pay interest on all moneys owed the plaintiff by the NRSC at the prevailing commercial bank rate with effect from January 1, 2009 to June 30, 2009 until the date of final payment.
In a statement of claim filed on behalf of Safeway Printing by its counsel, Mr Kwaku Bram-Larbi, the plaintiff stated that on or about September 2008, the defendant, per the Government of Ghana Purchase Order Number 0514649, awarded the plaintiff a GH¢6 million contract to supply 500,000 customised double function triangle warning light 51 LLD with NRSC/DVLA seal and identification serial number engraved at the rear of the device.
According to the plaintiff, it contracted a loan from the Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB) to finance the importation of the customised items and assigned the proceeds of the contract to the bank until the cost of the loan was cleared.
It pointed out that the defendant’s attention was drawn to the acquisition of the loan and its chief executive consented to the assignment by acknowledging notice of it in a letter dated October 21, 2008.
It said the warning triangles were imported and delivered to the defendants in early 2009 but the defendant had either been unable or refused to pay for the cost of the customised items imported by the plaintiff.
The statement further pointed out that the NRSC, prior to the importation of the triangles, wrote various letters urging Safeway Printing to fund the publicity and media campaign for the warning triangles, to which the plaintiff obliged and released GH¢161,240.
According to the plaintiff, the inability or refusal of the NRSC to collect and pay for the customised items it ordered was causing grave financial embarrassment to the plaintiff, such that its bankers had threatened to sue and attach its properties used as security for the loan.

Patients have right to medical records

August 3, 2010 (Centre Spread)

THE Human Rights Court in Accra has ruled that patients have a right to their medical records without recourse to a court action.
In its ruling on a motion on notice for medical records which was filed on behalf of Mrs Elizabeth Vaah, who had dragged the Lister Hospital and Fertility Centre to the court for the release of her medical records, the court held that Article 21 of the 1992 Constitution guaranteed freedom of information.
Although the hospital opposed the application at the onset, it later released the records, but Mrs Vaah prayed it to rule on the matter in order to set a precedence.
The presiding judge, Mr Justice U. P. Dery, held that the Constitution guaranteed the right to medical records as part of the freedom of information.
Costs of GH¢1,000 were awarded against Lister Hospital, whose initial opposition to the release of the records to Mrs Vaah was described as “baseless” by the court.
In the substantive motion, Mrs Vaah sought a declaration that a patient was entitled to his/her medical records within the custody of a health service institution, subject only to the payment of reasonable fees for the production of the records and any other limitations as recognised by law and notwithstanding the fact that the patient made statements in the public media.
Her counsel, Mr Tuinese Edward Amuzu, said he was of the view that Ghanaians and other nationals needed not go to court before they could have access to their medical records.
The grounds set out by the applicant included the fact that she had been delivered of a fresh still-born baby at the hospital on March 9, 2010 and a post mortem examination had stated that the pathologist was not sure of what caused the multiple organ haemorrhage of her baby.
According to the applicant, she intended to have another baby in future and would, therefore, need her medical records to put at the disposal of any doctor who might attend to her in Ghana or outside the country.
Responding to the applicant’s motion, counsel for Lister Hospital, Mr Victor Kwadjoga Adawudu, said the hospital was not against the motion because it recognised the right of patients to their medical records.
Counsel, however, expressed the fear that patients might doctor their medical records for selfish gains when they had access to them.
After carefully considering arguments from both parties, the court upheld Mrs Vaah’s motion and granted her reliefs.

Court to decide on right to medical record

July 15, 2010 (Page 46)

THE Human Rights Court in Accra will, on July 29, 2010, decide whether or not patients have a right to their medical records.
The court fixed the date following a motion on notice for medical records which was filed on behalf of Mrs Elizabeth Vaah, who dragged the Lister Hospital and Fertility Centre to the court for the release of her medical records.
Although the hospital opposed the application at the onset, it later released the records but Mrs Vaah is praying it to rule on the matter in order to set a precedence.
In the substantive motion, Mrs Vaah is seeking a declaration that a patient is entitled to his/her medical records within the custody of a health service institution, subject only to the payment of reasonable fees for the production of the record and any other limitations as recognised by law and notwithstanding that the patient made statements in the public media.
Citing legal authorities to support his client’s claims, Mr Tuinese Edward Amuzu, said he was of the view that Ghanaians and other nationals need not go to court before they could have access to their medical records.
The grounds set out by the applicant included the fact that she had been delivered of a fresh still baby at the hospital on March 9, 2010 and a post mortem examination stated that the pathologist was not sure of what caused the multiple organ haemorrhage of her baby.
According to the applicant, she intended to have another baby in future and would, therefore, need her medical records to put at the disposal of any doctor who might attend to her in Ghana or outside the country.
Responding to the applicant’s motion, counsel for the Lister Hospital, Mr Victor Kwadjoga Adawudu, said the hospital was not against the motion because it recognised the right of patients to their medical records.
Counsel, however, expressed the fear that patients might doctor their medical records for selfish gains when they had access to them.

3 jailed over cocaine

July 10, 2010 (Page 19)

THE Greater Accra Regional Tribunal has sentenced a Ghanaian and two Togolese to a total of 45 years’ imprisonment for possessing 398.5 kilogrammes of cocaine.
The three — Kwame Anane, a Ghanaian driver, Eugene Kofi Amewu, an unemployed Togolese, and Valentine Kofi Deblui, a Togolese driver, were each found guilty on two counts of possessing narcotic drugs without lawful authority and abetment.
They had pleaded not guilty to the offences but the court, after taking into account the evidence of the prosecution and the defence, held a different view and convicted them accordingly.
They were each sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment on the charge of possessing narcotic drugs without authority and 10 years imprisonment on the charge of abetment.
The sentences are to run concurrently.
Passing judgement, the trial judge, Mr Justice Kwadwo Owusu, stated that the prosecution had proved the guilt of the convicts beyond reasonable doubt.
The convicts, who were arrested upon a tip off in Nsawam in May 2008, had concealed the cocaine in a false compartment in a Mercedes Benz truck and covered the illicit drug with cow legs and hide in their bid to outwit security officials.
The facts of the case were that between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. on May 30, 2008, a team of policemen, upon a tip-off, mounted surveillance on a Mercedes Benz truck, with registration number GT 3359 Z, from Kumasi and a search uncovered 399 parcels of a substance suspected to be cocaine concealed in an artificially created compartment.
Tests conducted by the Ghana Standards Board (GSB) proved the 399 parcels positive for cocaine, with a net weight of 398,595,0131 grammes.
The tribunal, in October 2009, ordered the destruction of the cocaine, in the presence of officials from the court, the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB), the GSB and the Environmental Protection Agency EPA).
The tribunal gave the order after it had been tendered in evidence by the prosecution.
The court also ordered that the Mercedes Benz which was used to convey the drugs be confiscated to the state.