Friday, November 26, 2010

HFC man grabbed for lotto deal

Friday, November 25, 2010 (Page 3 Lead)

AN employee of the HFC Bank, Joseph Atta Wood, was yesterday put before the Accra Fast Track High Court for allegedly stealing GH¢327,673.11 belonging to his employers.
The accused person was said to have committed the offence between January, 2006 and May, 2010 and allegedly used the stolen money to acquire a storey building on two plots of land at Ashalley Botwe, a suburb of Accra, a Mercedes Benz saloon car, a Hyundai truck and also set up a sachet water distribution company .
Wood allegedly took advantage of his position as officer in charge of an arrangement made between the Department of National Lotteries (DNL) and the bank and, in the process, forged winning tickets to pay himself.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Mustapha Habib Logo, granted the accused bail in the sum of GH¢400,000 with three sureties, one of which is to be justified after he had pleaded not guilty to one count of stealing.
He was also ordered not to dispose of the assets he had allegedly acquired through his dubious acts.
The court also directed that the sureties must be residents of Accra or Tema.
Prosecuting, a Principal State Attorney, Mrs Evelyn Keelson, told the court that Wood was employed by the bank as an officer in charge of the arrangement made between DNL and HFC over the payment of winning coupons.
The arrangement was made by the two bodies in January, 2006.
Wood’s duty was to receive winning tickets from customers and pay them discounted face value of the amount after which DNL would refund the moneys paid to its clients by the bank.
By the agreement, customers who had won lotto draws and needed money immediately could claim the money at HFC Desk at the DNL at a discounted face value.
The winning tickets would then be validated by Wood before making payment. The winning tickets are sent to DNL later by HFC Bank for a refund of the face value of the tickets.
According to the prosecution, in January, 2010, HFC Bank wrote to DNL claiming to be reimbursed an outstanding balance of winning tickets totalling GH¢327,673.11, which the bank claimed it had paid to DNL’s customers but the DNL informed the bank that it was not indebted to it.
Following the bank’s demand and the DNL’s denial of owing it, the accused person was directed by the bank to submit a breakdown of the winning tickets making out the outstanding balance of GH¢327,673.11 on the DNL discounting account.
During checks by the bank and the DNL, it emerged that there were no genuine tickets to support the supposed payments of GH¢327,673.11 and that the accused person had dishonestly appropriated the amount by forging winning tickets.
Counsel for the accused person, Mr Egbert Faibille, in applying for bail, said the charges were mere allegations.
According to him, there was no proof that the accused person had misappropriated the said amount.
The case was adjourned to December 8, 2010

Thursday, November 25, 2010

'There is no legal vacuum for oil production'

November 25, 2010 (Page 51)

THE Government has denied claims of non-existence of a law to regulate the production of oil in commercial quantities from December, this year.
According to a Deputy Minister of Energy in-charge of Petroleum, Mr Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah said PNDC Law 84 which regulates exploration of petroleum had served the country well since 1984 and was still in existence while the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) had a Model Contract to regulate the activities of oil companies in the country.
The Deputy Minister explained the Model Contract currently tackles issues on exploration, production, disclosure of data, shareholding among a host of other issues as was being practiced in other oil producing countries.
Mr Buah told the Daily Graphic, that there was, therefore, no vacuum in terms of laws to regulate the activities of petroleum companies in the country.
“Production of first oil in December will take place without any hitch,” Mr Buah emphasized and explained that what the government had sought to do now was to amend sections of PNDC Law 84 to cater for issues of national interest.
Mr Buah said a Petroleum (Exploration and Production) Bill had been put together to revise the Petroleum (Exploration and Production) Act, 1984, PNDCL 84 in order to tighten up the existing legal framework.
He said the Bill also intended to create an enabling environment for increased private sector participation and investment in the petroleum sector and to strengthen the regulatory framework for healthy competition and quality assurance.
The Bill, dated July 2, 2010 and signed by the Energy Minister, Dr Joe Oteng-Adjei touches on a wide range of issues including petroleum rights, regulation of petroleum operations, allocation of blocks, rights and obligation of contractors and sub-contractors, fiscal provisions such as payment of royalties, tax, bonus payment, auditing, offences and penalties.
Mr Buah further explained that the government had complied with Article 268 of the 1992 Constitution which required that an independent Commission with powers to regulate and monitor the exploration, development and production of petroleum resources in the country must be established.

SEXUAL SHOCKER • 3 Siblings lay bare ordeal with dad

November 25, 2010 (Lead Story)

AN official of the Customs, Excise and Preventive (CEPS) has found himself at the wrong side of the law for allegedly defiling his two biological daughters aged 16 and seven.
Prosecutors said Michael Kojo Brentuo Acquah, 34, had several sexual encounters with his two daughters in their (victims’) room until November 2010 when the victims reported their ordeal to their mother.
According to the prosecutors, the last time the accused person had sexual intercourse with his 16-year-old daughter was November 11, 2010.
Acquah was also alleged not to have spared his three-year-old son whom he sexually assaulted. It was his alleged abuse of his son’s buttocks which broke his cover.
The three-year-old boy reported his father’s alleged misconduct to his (boy’s) mother, who confronted Acquah and eventually reported him to the police, leading to his arrest.
Acquah, who looked subdued when he was called into the dock to answer the charges, pleaded not guilty to one count of defilement and two counts of incest.
He was remanded in custody by the Accra Circuit Court, presided over by Mrs Georgina Mensah-Datsa, to reappear on December 1, 2010.
A man who appeared to be Acquah’s brother quickly alerted Acquah to the presence of the media when he attempted to leave the courtroom. With that information, Acquah rushed back into the courtroom to resume his seat.
The middle-aged man who was in smock confronted a TV3 cameraman for attempting to take pictures of him. A CEPS official in uniform was also spotted standing by the middle-aged man. His mission was unknown.
Eventually, Acquah managed to sneak out of the courtroom when he realised that the journalists were busily taking notes during the trial of Prophet Kwasi Yirenkyi, alias Jesus Onetouch, who is also on trial for allegedly defiling his daughter.
Prosecuting, an Assistant Superintendent of Police, Mrs Sarah Acquah, said the victims and the accused person lived at Banana Inn, a suburb of Accra, and that some few months ago the three-year-old boy complained that his father had been constantly massaging his buttocks, resulting in pain.
According to the prosecution, the accused person got offended and resorted to insults when his wife confronted him over the incident.
In the ensuing confrontation, the 16-year-old girl was said to have told her mother that Acquah had had sexual intercourse with her on several occasions, the last time being November 11, 2010.
The older victim also told her mother that Acquah had threatened to send her to the village to live with her grandmother if she dared tell her mother about her ordeal.
The seven-year-old girl also told her mother that Acquah had defiled her.
Following the revelations by the victims, their mother reported Acquah to the police, who issued medical forms to the victims to attend hospital for examination.
Acquah was arrested after medical reports had revealed that his daughters had been defiled.

Jesus Onetouch's wife defends husband

Thursday, November 25, 2010 (Page 3 Lead)

THE wife of Prophet Kwasi Yirenkyi, alias Jesus Onetouch, yesterday testified in the case in which her husband is standing trial for allegedly defiling his daughter and stated that the allegations levelled against her husband were false.
Akosua Agyeiwaa corroborated her husband’s earlier evidence that it was rather a security man in their house who defiled the victim.
According to her, she and others accompanied the accused person to report the alleged defilement of the victim by the watchman, known as Efo Emma, to the police in August, 2009.
Prophet Onetouch has pleaded not guilty to one count of defilement and has been denied bail by the circuit court, presided over by Mrs Georgina Mensah-Datsa.
The witness, who was led in evidence by one of the defence lawyers, Mr Paul Ofori, said she was also present when the victim’s mother said her daughter had informed her that Efo Emma had defiled her.
In answer to allegations that her husband had sex with the victim on Tuesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, the witness stated that those claims were false because her husband’s itinerary was such that there was no way such a thing could have happened.
According to her, the victim had once confessed to her that she, her mother and her grandmother were witches who had once attempted to spiritually attack her (witness) but they could not because they had been met by a strong light.
Agyeiwaa said the police, the victim and her mother visited their home and entered the bedroom after her husband had been arrested for defiling the victim.
She said the accused person protested the complainant’s decision to withdraw the victim from school to attend to chores in the village but the complainant did not budge and succeeded in taking the victim to the village in July 2009.
She gave the itinerary of the family and stated that there had been no point in time when the victim and the accused person had been left alone.
Agyeiwaa also denied concocting stories to save her husband from imprisonment, adding that she was a mother and would not defend anything evil.
Answering questions under cross-examination from a Chief State Attorney, Ms Helen Kwawukume, the witness told the court that her daughter had once informed her that Efo Emma had touched her buttocks.
She denied suggestions from the prosecution that she had made up the story to divert attention from her husband, adding that the victim confessed to being a witch and that it was not a move on her part to vilify the victim.
Witness also denied a suggestion from the prosecution that the victim was not her favourite.
A nephew of the accused person’s, Kwame Asare, said he had once seen Efo Emma and the victim in a compromising position and further stated that he later reported the incident to the accused person.
He said the children in the accused person’s household did not have access to the accused person’s bedroom, adding that there had been no point in time when the accused person had assaulted someone in the household.
During cross-examination, the witness denied a suggestion from the prosecution that he had been summoned by the accused person to tell lies to the court.
Hearing continues on December 8, 2010.

Tema cocaine accused granted bail

Wednesday, November 24, 2010 (Page 3)

THE Accra Fast Track High Court yesterday granted GH¢150,000 bail with three sureties, one to be justified, to one of the four persons accused of allegedly importing 125 slabs of cocaine with a street value of $10 million.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Mustapha Habib Logo, granted bail to Edward Kojo Arhin, a clearing agent, after the prosecution had indicated it was not opposed to the grant of bail to Arhin.
Arhin was directed to report every other day to the investigator in charge of the case. The court also directed that the sureties for the accused person should be residents of Accra or Tema.
The court also gave the prosecution one week to come before it and justify why it (court) should continue holding Anthony Wilson, the Operations Manager of FormulaOne+, importers of the alleged narcotic drugs.
The first accused person, Benjamin Armstrong, was however, remanded in custody to reappear on November 30, 2010.
An accused six-month pregnant person, Kyerewaa Twum-Barimah, was on November 9, 2010 granted bail in the sum of GH¢80,000 with two sureties.
The court’s directive stemmed from an application for discharge or in the alternative grant of bail by counsel for Armstrong and Wilson, who argued on the grounds that there was no evidence to show his clients were guilty of any crime.
Arguing his motion for discharge of his clients or in the alternative grant of bail, Mr Joe Aboagye Debrah, informed the court that facts in the knowledge and possession of officials of the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB) clearly indicated that his clients were innocent of any crime.
According to counsel, Armstrong was financed by the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) to order additives for petroleum products from the United States of America (USA) and nowhere was he or
Wilson involved in the packaging and shipment of the products to Tema.
Counsel argued that the Master Bill of Laden accompanying the container containing the additives and cocaine proved that the consignee was Consolidated Shipping Services, adding that by law the consignee was the importer.
He also argued that the container belonged to Consolidated Shipping Services and nowhere did the bill of laden name Armstrong and Wilson as the owners.
Mr Debrah said Armstrong and Wilson never had any physical or legal control over the packaging and shipment of the additives, and that the seal of the suppliers of the additives had also been broken.
He said the NACOB was aware the seal was broken en route to Tema, adding that the security agency also knew the container was taken off the ship for three days while in Panama.
Mr Debrah stated that from the prosecution’s own facts and facts adduced from the bill of laden, it was abundantly clear the accused persons had not committed any crime.
He, therefore, prayed the court to look at the facts of the case and let justice prevail, adding that the accused persons were responsible citizens with fixed places of abode.
Responding to the defence counsel’s application, a Principal State Attorney, Mrs Evelyn Keelson, said the state was not opposed to bail for Arhin.
She, however, opposed the grant of bail for Armstrong and Wilson on the grounds that Armstrong travelled to the USA after placing the order for the fuel additives, while Wilson was the one who contracted the clearing agents to clear the fuel additives.
The court said it was not enough for the prosecution to state that Wilson was culpable for simply being the Operations Manager and accordingly gave the prosecution one week to convince it on why it should not grant bail to Wilson.
The brief facts of the case were that Armstrong ordered the fuel additives and when the consignment arrived in Tema, the container containing the fuel additives was found to contain boxes of fuel additives, advertising T-shirts and four travelling bags which were later found to contain 125 slabs of cocaine.
She said a field test conducted by NACOB officials indicated that the substances tested positive for cocaine.
Mrs Keelson said the drugs had been forwarded to the Ghana Standards Board for analysis while investigations were ongoing.

Prosecution re-opens case in Ya-Na trial

Wednesday, November 24, 2010 (Page 3 Lead)

BARELY three weeks after closing its case in the Ya-Na murder case, the prosecution has declared its intention to reopen the case.
According to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Ms Gertrude Aikins, the state intended to call witnesses to lead additional evidence vital to the case.
She said she had filed an application to that effect but counsel for the accused persons, Mr Philip Addison, who was expected to make a submission of “no case” yesterday, said the prosecution had not provided enough grounds upon which they intended to re-open the case.
A Chief State Attorney, Mr Rexford Wiredu, had on November 5, 2010 closed the case for the prosecution to which Mr Atta Akyea, one of the lawyers for 15 persons accused of murdering the Overlord of Dagbon, Ya-Na Yakubu Andani, declared the defence team’s intention to make a submission of no case.
After the DPP’s announcement, which came as a surprise to the defence team, the presiding judge, Mr Justice E. K. Ayebi, an Appeal Court judge with additional responsibility as a High Court judge, directed the prosecution, the defence team and the court with enough grounds upon which it intended to re-open the case.
The case was accordingly adjourned to Monday, November 29, 2010.
Twelve witnesses have so far testified for the prosecution.
The accused persons are Iddrisu Iddi, alias Mbadugu; Alhaji Baba Abdulai, alias Zohe; Kwame Alhassan, alias Achiri; Mohammed Abdulai, alias Samasama; Sayibu Mohammed; Alhassan Braima and Zakaria Yakubu, alias Zakaria Forest, who is currently on the run.
The rest are Mohammed Habib Tijani, the former District Chief Executive of Yendi; Baba Ibrahim, alias Baba Zey; Alhassan Mohammed, alias Mohammed Cheampon; Mohammed Mustapha; Shani Imoro; Yakubu Yusif, alias Leftee; Hammed Abukari Yussif and Abdul Razak Yussif, alias Nyaa Dagbani.
All the accused persons, except Zakaria Yakubu, have been charged with conspiracy to murder and have pleaded not guilty to the charge. Zakaria has been charged with murder.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

KOMBIAN FEVER • Stirs crowd at Circuit Court

Tuesday, November 23, 2010 (Lead Story)

A THICK crowd yesterday besieged the precincts of the Cocoa Affairs Courts demanding the blood of Johnson Kombian, alias Nakpanduri Terror, for allegedly killing two cops, one of whom was buried over the weekend.
The 35-year-old two-time jail breaker, who was overpowered in Togo by Togolese security forces, was accosted by the angry crowd while he was being escorted from the circuit court.
But the for the presence of heavily armed policemen who escorted Kombian out of the courtroom into a waiting vehicle, the crowd would have lynched the notorious cop killer.
The incensed crowd, which spoke mostly Akan, wondered why the Togolese authorities did not end the life of Kombian, whom they described as a “wicked killer”.
The crowd used their cellular phones to take pictures of Kombian, who was shoved into a waiting pick-up by armed policemen.
Kombian, who appeared to be in pain apparently from head and bodily injuries he suffered at the hands of his captives, moaned and groaned while in the courtroom and outside of it.
His groans, however, incensed the crowd the more.
Kombian squeezed his eyes shut when he observed the media and the public were taking pictures of him, while at a point, he appeared to be smiling.
He has been charged with one count of escaping from lawful custody. His plea was not taken.
While in the dock, Kombian, who was bare-chested, was assisted by security officers to wear a shirt amidst groans.
A Chief State Attorney, Mr Rexford Owiredu, told the court that the accused person escaped from the Tamale Central Prisons in January, 2010, while serving a five-year sentence imposed on him by a court.
Narrating the facts of the case, the prosecutor said Kombian stole a tape recorder and was kept at the Gambaga Prisons but he managed to escape.
According to the prosecution, Kombian was re-arrested and kept in the Tamale Central Prisons but he escaped again after paying a GH¢4,000 bribe to a prison officer known as Frafra.
The prosecution stated that the accused person went to Nigeria and later went to Togo to set up a business until his arrest last Friday.
The Chief State Attorney, therefore, prayed the court to remand the accused to prevent him from escaping again.
His lawyer, Mr George Asamaney, said his client’s health was in danger and for that reason the court should order that he should be given medical care.
He also prayed the court to advise the media to desist from commenting on the substance of the case.
The presiding judge, Mr Kyei Baffour, said the court had its limit in ensuring that it did not gag the media, especially in matters bordering on national interest.
He said he believed the media knew their limits and further advised that the accused person be given the needed medical attention.
Mr Wiredu said the accused person was currently receiving treatment at the Police Hospital.
Kombian is also being investigated for a number of robberies and murders.
He is alleged to have murdered a number of his robbery victims during his brutal operations at Nakpanduri.
His latest murder victims were the two policemen, Constables Prince Agyare and Owusu Frimpong, whom he killed in a gun raid he launched against the police.
The third victim in the gun raid is still receiving treatment for gunshot wounds.
Constable Agyare was buried at his hometown, near Koforidua in the Eastern Region, on Saturday, a day after Kombian’s arrest.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

$29.9 m "COKE' IN FLAMES

Thursday, November 18, 2010 (Lead Story)

FOUR-HUNDRED AND SIXTEEN kilogrammes of cocaine with a street value of $29.9 million was yesterday set ablaze on the orders of the Accra Fast-Track High Court.
The destruction, which took place behind the Independence Square, close to the sea, was witnessed by the media and officials from the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB), the Attorney-General’s Department, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), security agencies and the court, including the registrar of the Fast-Track High Court.
Huge travelling bags containing the 380 slabs of the stuff seized at Ataabadze Junction in June, 2008, were covered with lorry tyres before a security official poured a considerable quantity of fuel on them and set them ablaze about 2 p.m. to destroy them.
The drugs were completely reduced to ashes within 35 minutes.
Scores of armed policemen were present to ensure law and order during the destruction of the drugs, which were taken from the courtroom and put in a police van after they had been tendered in evidence as exhibits by the investigator in charge of the case.
A large number of youth who abandoned their swimming and passers-by witnessed the destruction.
Giving orders for the destruction of the drugs, the presiding judge, Mr Justice C. J. Hoenyenuga, intermittently described the drugs as “evil things”.
He also directed that the keys to a Toyota 4Runner with registration number GR 1204 Y and a Toyota Corolla saloon car with registration number GW 31 Z, which were in the possession of the alleged owners of the drugs, should be handed over to the registrar of the court until the final determination of the case.
The court ordered the destruction of the narcotic drugs after officials of the Ghana Standard Board (GSB) had conducted a test and confirmed they tested positive for cocaine.
Meanwhile, one of the four accused persons who was standing trial for conspiracy and possession of narcotic drugs without lawful authority has pleaded guilty to the offence.
Samuel Agoe Mills Robertson, a 49-year-old auto mechanic who was the driver of the vehicle which was carrying the drugs, was accordingly sentenced to 15 years in jail with hard labour in June, 2010.
The three others, who are currently standing trial, are Owiredu Agyemfra, alias Chuku Owura, a 32-year-old herbalist; Derrick Kwarteng, a 51-year-old contractor and Charles Lartey, 35.
Charles, who was alleged to have appeared at the scene after the arrest of the other accused persons, is on a GH¢50,000 bail with a surety while Kwarteng and Agyemfra are on remand.
At the court’s sitting in Accra yesterday, the investigator in charge of the case, Assistant Superintendent of Police, Mr Bernard Baba Ananga, was led by a Chief State Attorney, Ms Valerie O. Amate, to tender in evidence the cartons of cocaine.
The courtroom was filled with the strong scent of the drug after the cartons were opened to prove to the court they had not been tampered with.
The scent was so strong that an official of the GSB, who had arrived in court to witness the destruction of the drugs, attempted to walk out of the courtroom. He was, however, stopped by the Chief State Attorney.
His near walkout prompted the trial judge to adjourn proceedings in the case to December 6, 2010 to enable the destruction to take place.
Robertson and the three others who were arrested in connection with the haul were initially put before an Accra circuit court.
The facts of the case are that on June 28, 2008, Kwarteng contracted Robertson to cart cocaine from Asankragua in the Western Region to Accra for a fee of $40,000 and he agreed.
The prosecution said Robertson, therefore, recruited Agyemfra and Mike Eben, as escorts.
On that same day, Robertson used his Toyota saloon car with registration number GW 31 Z and conveyed Agyemfra and Eben to Asankragua where they met Kwarteng at a hotel.
Kwarteng also handed over a four-wheel drive with registration number GR 1204 Y, loaded with 19 travelling bags with each of them containing 20 slabs, totalling 380 slabs of cocaine, to Robertson and his escorts.
Robertson drove the vehicle carrying the consignment with Agyemfra and Eben on board as security to Takoradi, where they stayed overnight.
According to the prosecution, on the day of the arrest, the Cape Coast Highway police patrol team from the Motor Transport and Traffic Unit intercepted the vehicle, which had on board it Robertson, Kwarteng and Agyemfra.
However, Agyemfra and Eben escaped into the bush but the police managed to arrest Agyemfra.
When a search was conducted on the vehicle, 19 travelling bags, each containing 20 slabs of whitish powdery substance suspected to be cocaine, were found.
The prosecution said during police interrogation, Robertson offered the Police $6,000 in exchange of his freedom.
He, therefore, called Lartey who was in Accra to bring the amount but as soon as Lartey arrived, the police arrested him too.

Three jailed 60 years for robbery

November 17, 2010 (Page 3 Lead)

THE Accra Circuit Court has sentenced three persons to a total of 60 years’ imprisonment with hard labour for conspiracy and robbery.
The convicts, Salifu Masawudu, an architect, Kwaku Ahiahonu, a mason, and Agbogbah Althanazius Bismark Kwame, a computer analyst, were convicted after the court found them guilty on two counts of robbery and conspiracy.
They were sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment on each count, but the sentences would run concurrently.
Salifu, 21, Kwaku, 24 and Kwame, 23 and two others, who are on the run, committed the offence about 6:30 p.m. on December 18, 2008 when they forcibly entered the premises of SIDALCO Company Limited on the Spintex Road in Accra.
In the process, they fired warning shots and ordered the complainant, his friend and workers to lie prostrate while they ransacked the office.
Consequently, the convicts made away with GH¢50,000, $20,000, two laptops worth GH¢3,000, 32 cellular phones worth GH¢3,200 and a gold ring valued at $50,000.
The convicts also took away cash of GH¢4,700 and three cellular phones belonging to the complainant’s friend, the Head Pastor of the Ashaiman branch of the Action Faith Ministry, who was in the office of the complainant during the incident.
They pleaded not guilty to the charges, but the court, presided over by Mr Justice C. A. Wilson, a High Court judge with additional responsibility as a Circuit Court judge, stated that the prosecution was able to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
Mr Justice Wilson held that the action of the convicts was violent, callous and premeditated.
He said the prosecution also proved that the three convicts actively participated in the offence, adding that “there is a high rate of robbery in the country and in my view there is justifiable reason to impose a severe sentence, which will serve as a deterrent”.
After the conviction, Salifu wept bitterly in open court and blamed the other accused persons for his fate.
The facts of the case were that on December 18, 2008, the Pastor had visited the Managing Director of SIDALCO Limited, when the convicts and two others attacked them and robbed them in the process.
The two friends reported the incident to the East Legon Police after the incident and during investigations Kwame was arrested. He led the police to the house of Kwaku, who turned out to be residing directly opposite the complainant’s company premises.

Prosecution asks for more time

November 16, 2010 (Page 3 Lead)

THE prosecution in the case involving Amina Mohammed, the woman at the centre of the highway rape and robbery story, yesterday indicated that it needed ample time to start its case, particularly when witnesses in the case were scattered all over the country.
A State Attorney, Mr Paul Assibi Abariga, told the court that the case would be started at an opportune time, with the explanation that the prosecution needed to put all pieces of evidence together before starting its case.
“Justice delayed is justice denied and justice hurried is justice buried,” Mr Abariga stated and accordingly prayed the court to grant his request for an adjournment.
However, the trial judge, Mrs Patience Mills-Tetteh, indicated her resolve to dispose of the case by December 20, 2010.
Consequently, she adjourned the case to November 22 and 23, 2010 for definite hearing.
“I do not want the case to go beyond December 20, 2010. I would not entertain the case after December 20, 2010,” Mr Mills-Tetteh stated and added that the case would be heard on a daily basis.
Mr Abariga, who was absent together with the investigator when the case was called around 8:40 a.m. at the circuit court in Accra last week, explained why he was absent.
He informed the court that on that day in question, he arrived in the courtroom at 8:50 a.m. but was informed the case had already been called and accordingly adjourned.
However, counsel for the accused person, Mr Andy Appiah-Kubi, raised concern about Mr Abariga’s submissions that he (Abariga) showed up in court after the matter had been adjourned on November 9, 2010.
According to Mr Appiah-Kubi, Mr Abariga sought to practise “ambush litigation” when he appeared before the court well after the case had been adjourned and a new date fixed for hearing.
Mr Abariga objected to Mr Appiah-Kubi’s line of argument and explained that he had, on that particular day, prayed the court to hear him but the court declined.
He also argued that the defence team would have prayed the court to stand the case down to enable the prosecution to appear if the accused person was in custody.
Mrs Mills-Tetteh also explained that Mr Abariga indeed appeared before her in open court on that day in question but she did not record him.
Amina was present in court and, as usual, covered her face to avoid the cameras when she left the courtroom.
The accused person has pleaded not guilty to two counts of publishing false news with intent to cause fear and panic and deceit of public officer.
The court on November 2, 2010 refused bail for Amina and remanded her till November 9, 2010, but her lawyers managed to secure bail for her at the Human Rights Court on Friday, November 5, 2010.
She was granted bail in the sum of GH¢5,000 with a surety by the court presided over by Mr Justice Paul U. Dery.
The brief facts of the case were that the accused person granted interviews to radio stations on October 26, 2010 and stated among other things that she was among passengers on a bus which was attacked by armed robbers when they reached Kintampo and that in the process the robbers ordered a mass rape of female occupants.
She was also quoted as saying a father was ordered to rape his 14-year-old daughter.
According to the prosecution, investigations revealed that such incident did not occur and said the driver of the said bus reported a case to the Ejisu Police and stated in his statement that his bus was nearly attacked by robbers at Kubease but he managed to escape with the destruction of his vehicle's windscreen due to gunshots.
The prosecution further stated that the driver of the bus drove off 30 minutes after reporting the incident, which occurred at about 10 p.m. on October 11, 2010.

Monday, November 15, 2010

POTAG WINS ROUND 1 • NLC ordered to appoint mediator

Saturday, November 13, 2010 (Lead Story)

THE Fast Track High Court has given the National Labour Commission (NLC) a seven-day ultimatum, effective yesterday, to appoint a mediator to settle disputes between the Polytechnic Teachers Association of Ghana (POTAG) and the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC).
The Labour and Industrial Division of the Fast Track High Court in Accra gave the order yesterday after it had dismissed a suit filed by the NLC which had prayed the court to order members of POTAG to end their strike.
The NLC had also prayed the court to order POTAG to submit itself to compulsory arbitration with the FWSC but the court declined to grant that offer as well.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Kwabena Asuman-Adu, however, appealed to the polytechnic teachers “to, in the interest of students and Mother Ghana, call off the strike”.
Members of the association, who have been on strike for the past four weeks, thronged the court premises to listen to the decision. They applauded immediately the court threw out the suit.
The POTAG leadership expressed its intention to convene an emergency meeting to decide the next line of action.
According to the court, the NLC failed to adhere to processes set out in the Labour Act for the settlement of disputes.
For instance, it held that records available clearly indicated that the NLC did not follow the right procedure before referring POTAG and the FWSC to engage in compulsory arbitration.
The court held that the Labour Act stipulated that feuding parties must first enter into mediation and when that failed, they were then required to enter into arbitration.
It said it was only when the arbitration failed that the NLC could go ahead and order parties to enter into compulsory or voluntary arbitration and not compulsory/voluntary arbitration as the NLC had sought to make the court believe.
Mr Justice Asuman-Adu said he had carefully read the Labour Act and nowhere did it state that parties could enter compulsory/voluntary arbitration.
“The Labour Act makes mention of either compulsory or voluntary arbitration and not compulsory/voluntary arbitration,” the judge held, pointing out that the NLC’s decision directing POTAG and the FWSC to enter into compulsory/voluntary arbitration was ambiguous.
“The court is in a fix as to the specific order the NLC wants the court to address. The NLC was not clear in citing the act. How can the court order anything?” Mr Justice Asuman-Adu queried.
The presiding judge further argued that the court found it difficult to enforce the NLC’s application because the issue had not got to that stage to warrant the court to order compulsory arbitration.
According to the court, from the records, it could be said that the NLC did not exhaust all procedures under the Labour Act, adding that records available also indicated that the NLC did not arrive at any specific decision to warrant the court to sanction its decision for compulsory arbitration.
He said POTAG had, throughout its correspondence with the NLC, clearly indicated its willingness and readiness to negotiate for a review of its conditions of service which had expired since 2006, while the FWSC had, from the court records, proved it was not in a position to negotiate with POTAG.
It further held that due to the NLC’s failure to follow due processes stipulated under the Labour Act in resolving disputes, it was premature for it to direct compulsory arbitration between POTAG and the FWSC and, worst of all, pray the court to enforce its directive which, according to the court, did not exist in the first place.
It said it was also not fair for the NLC to pray the court to direct POTAG to go into compulsory arbitration with the FWSC when it was evident that the FWSC was the unwilling party.
It, therefore, directed the NLC to adopt a proper procedure acceptable to both parties.
No costs were awarded.
Reacting to the court’s ruling, counsel for POTAG, Mr Sampson Obeng, described it as “excellent” and expressed his client’s willingness and readiness to negotiate with the FWSC.
“Once they are willing to negotiate, we will call off the strike. The court is there to enforce the law and not to do anybody’s bidding,” he pointed out.
Mr Obeng gave the assurance that his client was responsible and would comply with the court’s ruling if the FWSC opened its doors for POTAG.

Friday, November 12, 2010

Two prison officers granted bail

November 12, 2010 (Page 19)

TWO prison officers alleged to have aided and facilitated the escape of one of the alleged killers of a Lighthouse Chapel International pastor have been arraigned before the Greater Accra Regional Tribunal.
The two, Assistant Chief Officer Godfred Asah, 52, and Cpl Nana Appiah-Kubi, 37, were alleged to have aided Yaw Asamoah to escape from a court in Accra on October 27, 2010.
They have pleaded not guilty to one count of aiding the escape of Yaw Asamoah and have been granted bail in the sum of GH¢10,000 with two sureties to reappear on November 16, 2010.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice P. K. Aggrey, said he took into account the submissions for bail by counsel for the accused persons, Mr Alexander Abban, before granting bail.
Prosecuting, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr E. Y. Frimpong, informed the court that the accused persons were prison officers stationed at Nsawam Medium Security Prisons.
On October 27, 2010, Yaw Asamoah, who was serving a 20-year sentence for robbery, was under the escort of the two accused persons to be taken to the Accra High Court No. 7.
The court was on that day expected to deliver judgement in a robbery and rape case against Asamoah.
The prosecution said the prison officers arrived at the courtroom around 8:00 am with Asamoah when the court was not in session.
According to the prosecution, the accused persons removed the handcuffs from the wrists of the convict and left him without a guard to engage in mobile phone calls.
The prosecution said Asamoah took advantage of the prison officers’ unprofessional posture and took to his heels.
Information about the escape of the convict subsequently reached the Accra Regional Police Command, prompting the Regional Police Commander, DCOP Ms Rose Atinga Bio, and a team of officers to visit the scene.
On the spot investigation confirmed the escape of the convict while further investigation resulted in prison authorities handing over the accused persons to the police for prosecution.

SCRAMBLE FOR HAJJ CASH •10 claim accounts • IBG disagrees

Friday, November 12, 2010 (Lead Story)

THERE was a new twist to the suit brought against the National Hajj Committee (NHC) yesterday, as 10 individuals claimed ownership of the accounts of the NHC, contrary to evidence adduced by an official of the Intercontinental Bank Ghana (IBG).
When proceedings began at the Fast Track High Court, counsel for the claimants, who are mostly members of the current Hajj Committee, applied to withdraw a notice filed on October 29, 2010, which had described the NHC as the owner of the accounts and replace it with a new document.
Ms Barbara Serwaa Asamoah’s notice was filed barely 24 hours after the court had dismissed an application from the NHC that prayed it to set aside an order freezing the accounts of the Committee.
The application followed the Hajj Committee’s indebtedness of GH¢214,000 to a former member of the Committee.
The new notice mentioned the new claimants to the two accounts, which contain GH¢1,752,948.48 and $238,028.80, as Inusah Fuseini, Amadu Sorogho, Babalamie Abu Sadat, Alhassan Benneh, Sheikh Yahaya Amin, Alhaji Yusuf Captain, Alhaji Mahama Fuseini, Hajia Laadi Ayi Ayamba, Hajia Afusat Iyabor and Hajj Mohammed Addo.
The numbers for the cedi and dollar accounts are 1051 870 0907 and 1052 5200 8336 respectively.
However, the head of Personal and Enterprises Banking at the IBG, Albert Papa Kofi Ackun, mounted the witness box and informed the court on oath that records at the bank indicated that the NHC was the owner of the account being claimed by the 10 individuals.
Mr Ackun, who appeared on behalf of the bank upon a court order, said the cedi and dollar accounts, which fell under enterprises and not personal accounts, had Alhaji Alhassan Benneh, the current chairman of the NHC, and Hajj Ahmed Iddris as signatories.
The witness tendered in bank documents in evidence as exhibits to authenticate his evidence.
The presiding judge, Mr Justice S. K. Asiedu, refused the application for withdrawal and rather directed Ms Asamoah to add the new notice to the records to enable the court to arrive at the truth.
Before the court’s ruling, counsel for the plaintiff, Mr Yonny Kulendi, objected to the withdrawal of the October 29, 2010 notice on grounds that it was procedurally wrong and he, therefore, prayed the court to allow both notices to stand in the court’s record books to enable the court to examine the conduct of what he described as “so-called claimants of the accounts”.
Mr Kulendi said a group of people were using all names and aliases to avoid a legitimate debt and for that reason the court should not allow itself to be disabled and abused.
Counsel was displeased with persons creating the impression in the media that the court was sabotaging the Hajj pilgrimage, when, according to him, that was far from the truth. He advised persons who had resorted to media trial to check the facts before passing judgement.
The trial judge should have ruled on whether or not to order the bank to pay the plaintiff, but decided to hold on with his ruling to enable parties in the case to respond to the application describing the 10 individuals as claimants to the account.
Mr Justice Asiedu said it was important for the court to allow the court processes to be completed in order to arrive at the bottom of the matter to unveil the truth, which, he said, was only one.
The trial judge, therefore, directed Mr Kulendi to file his response to the latest claim to enable the registrar to serve the other parties in the case. A new date will be fixed by the registrar after parties in the case have filed their responses.
In the substantive matter, the plaintiff, Afaa Akeem, loaned the money to the committee, which was paid directly to Egypt Air on November 22, 2008 in order to avoid the cancellation of the flight, which had been chartered to carry pilgrims to Saudi Arabia but the Committee failed to pay back the money.
After persistent calls on the Committee to pay back his money had failed, he issued a writ at the Fast Track High Court on November 11, 2009 and got default judgement in his favour on January 28, 2010 after the Committee had failed to file its defence.
Following the court’s judgement in favour of the plaintiff and further issuance of a garnishee order, which was directed at the bankers of the Hajj Committee, an affidavit was filed by the Committee praying the court to set aside the plaintiff’s application for a garnishee order on the grounds that the current Committee did not have anything to do with the 2008 IHMC committee.
However, counsel for the plaintiff, Mr Yonny Kulendi, advanced arguments to prove that the current Committee had taken over the offices of the IHMC, as well as its assets and had even gone on to pay some debts owed by the 2008 IHMC.
Dismissing the application, the court held that the application filed by the Committee was without merit and was frivolous and incompetent and awarded costs of GH¢1,000 against Awudu Ariff Abubakar, who swore the affidavit praying the court to set aside its garnishee order.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Pregnant cocaine suspect granted bail

Thursday, November 11, 2010 (Page 51)

THE Accra Fast Track High Court has granted bail to a pregnant suspect among four persons accused of importing cocaine.
Kyerewaa Twum Barima, who is six months pregnant according to medical records was granted bail in the sum of GH¢80,000 with two sureties, one to be justified.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Mustapha Habib Logo, also directed that the sureties must be residents of either Accra or Tema.
It, however, remanded her alleged accomplices namely Benjamin Armstrong, Anthony Wilson and Edward Kojo Arhin, to reappear on November 23, 2010.
Benjamin and Anthony are managing director and deputy managing director respectively of Pharma+, importers of derivatives for petroleum products which later turned out to contain cocaine while Edward and Kyerewaa are clearing agents at Tema.
The prosecution did not object to the grant of bail to Kyerewaa on the grounds that the law did not allow a pregnant woman to be put in custody.
Family members and sympathisers of the accused persons exclaimed when the court ordered the detention of Benjamin, Anthony and Edward. Some looked visibly shocked and grief stricken when the accused persons were whisked away from the courtroom.
Others were consoled by defence lawyers who gave them assurance that all legal means would be exhausted to give their detained family members freedom.
Kyerewaa has been charged together with the three others on two counts of conspiracy and importation of narcotic drugs without licence from the Minister of Health.
Earlier, a Principal State Attorney, Mrs Evelyn Keelson, prayed the court to remand the accused persons because investigations were ongoing.
She also said that she had been served with bail application from counsel for Kyerewaa and Edward and further indicated that the suspected narcotic substances had been forwarded to the Ghana Standards Board (GSB) for analysis.
According to Mrs Keelson, investigations were ongoing in Panama, Los Angeles and Ghana to arrive at the truth of the matter.
However, counsel for Benjamin and Anthony wondered why his clients should be kept in custody while the consignee and shipping line which had control over the goods should be left off the hook.
According to Mr Joe Aboagye Debrah, the state was too scared to bring to book Maersk Shipping Line and Consolidated Shipping, the shippers and consignees of the goods.
He said the state was not being candid with the court because the bill of laden and other documents clearly indicated that the consignee and shipping line were responsible for the handling and delivery of the goods.
Counsel argued that the accused persons were arrested on October 18, 2010 and placed in detention which he described as unlawful on the grounds that the accused persons were kept beyond 48 hours before being put before court.
He further argued that the state was aware that the container holding the goods was tampered with at Panama adding that the court should, therefore, waive the state’s detention of the accused persons.
“The continuous detention of the accused persons is a continuing illegality. The court should not sanction such illegality,” Mr Debrah emphasised.
Counsel for Kyerewaa and Edward, Mr James Agalga associated himself with Mr Debrah’s submissions and re-echoed the need for the court to grant his clients bail.

Court throws out Hajj Committee’s application

Thursday, November 11, 2010 (Page 3 Lead)

THE Accra Fast Track High Court yesterday dismissed an application from the National Hajj Committee (NHC) that prayed the court to set aside an order freezing the accounts of the Committee.
The application followed the Hajj Committee’s indebtedness of GH¢214,000 to a former member of the committee.
The plaintiff, Afaa Akeem, loaned the money to the Committee, which was paid directly to Egypt Air on November 22, 2008 in order to avoid the cancellation of the flight which had been chartered to carry pilgrims to Saudi Arabia but the Committee failed to pay back the money.
After persistent calls on the Committee to pay back his money had failed, he issued a writ at the Fast Track High Court on November 11, 2009 and got default judgement in his favour on January 28, 2010 after the Committee had failed to file its defence.
Following the court’s judgement in favour of the plaintiff and further issuance of a garnishee order, which was directed at the bankers of the Hajj Committee, the Committee, through Awudu Ariff Abubakar, filed an affidavit praying the court to set aside the plaintiff’s application for a garnishee order on the grounds that the current Committee did not have anything to do with the 2008 IHMC committee.
However, counsel for the plaintiff, Mr Yonny Kulendi, advanced arguments to prove that the current Committee had taken over the offices of the IHMC, as well as its assets and had even gone on to pay some debts owed by the 2008 IHMC.
Dismissing the application, the court held that the application filed by the Committee was without merit and was frivolous and incompetent.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice S. K. A. Asiedu, awarded costs of GH¢1,000 against Awudu Ariff Abubakar, who swore the affidavit praying the court to set aside its garnishee order.
The court would sit today to consider the plaintiff’s application for a garnishee order.
Abubakar had sworn an affidavit on behalf of the Committee and deposed that the current Hajj Committee was an unregistered body tasked by potential pilgrims to organise this year’s pilgrimage to Mecca.
It said the current Committee, among others, did not know the IHMC that borrowed the plaintiff’s money.
However, counsel for the plaintiff, in reply, argued that the Hajj Committee was not formed by potential pilgrims but by the National Chief Imam in consultation with a council of Muslim elders and chiefs, as well as the government.
Mr Kulendi contended that all other groups in the past were constituted by the Chief Imam and the other parties mentioned earlier.
He said the NHC had been variously described in the past, adding that the current Committee was a successor to the 2008 Interim Hajj Management Committee (IHMC).
Counsel further argued that the NHC thus assumed the authority and functions of the 2008 IHMC and took over all its assets, liabilities and privileges.
For instance, he said the current Committee took over the office premises of IHMC at Kanda allocated to the IHMC by the government, as well as assets such as office equipment, a Nissan Amada four-wheel drive, which was bought by the IHMC and currently being used by officials of the Hajj Committee in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Mr Kulendi submitted that some of the old members of the 2008 IHMC were currently serving on the current Hajj Committee and stated, for instance, that the National Chief Imam reappointed Alhaji Osman English Kadri to serve on his behalf on the current Hajj Committee, while Sheikh Yahaya Amin was appointed as representative of a member of the Board of Trustees of the 2008 IHMC.
The plaintiff also contended that some of the debts such as debt owed to Sama Airline had already been paid by the current Hajj Committee.
The plaintiff also produced newspaper publication which proved that the National Chief Imam formed all Hajj Committees in consultation with other groups.
He contended that the Financial Report of 2008 IHMC also proved that the Committee owed the plaintiff.
He also produced documents to prove that the plaintiff’s demand notice was received and signed for on behalf of the current Chairman of the Hajj Committee by his secretary.
The plaintiff also swore an affidavit to the effect that he personally had meetings with the National Chief Imam and the Vice President, both of whom commended him for his patience and assured him that the money owed him would be paid but to no avail.
Counsel further contended that his client personally went to the current Chairman, Alhaji Benneh, to demand his money but the latter told him the Chief of Staff had paid debts owed by the Hajj Committee and there was no way he (Alhaji Benneh) could go back and demand additional payment of debts.
Plaintiff further contended that Alhaji Benneh advised him to take any action to recover his money, adding that that statement was what compelled him to go to court.
Plaintiff contended that the Committee failed to file an appeal and rather filed an affidavit praying the court to set aside the garnishee order on the grounds that the current Hajj Committee had nothing to do with the IHMC.
Counsel accordingly prayed the court to dismiss the Hajj Committee’s application, which the court obliged.

Prosecution absent at Amina’s trial

Wednesday, November 10, 2010 (Page 3 Lead)

THE prosecution in the case involving Amina Mohammed, the woman at the centre of the rape and robbery story, failed to show up when the case was called at the Circuit Court in Accra yesterday.
However, counsel for the accused person, Mr Andy Appiah-Kubi, was present in court together with Amina.
Amina, who has pleaded not guilty to two counts of publishing false news with intent to cause fear and panic and deceit of public officer, arrived on the court premises about 8:20 a.m. in the company of her husband with her face covered with cloth to hide it from the cameras.
The matter was called at exactly 8:40 a.m. but the prosecutor and investigator in-charge of the case were absent, prompting the presiding judge, Mrs Patience Mills-Tetteh, to indicate that the court would not countenance any delays.
She indicated her resolve to dispose of the case by December 20, 2010.
Consequently, she adjourned the case to November 15, 22 and 23, 2010 for definite hearing.
After the adjournment, Mr Appiah-Kubi drew the court’s attention to discussions of the substantive matter in the media.
He was particularly worried about public officials joining the fray to prejudge the case.
According to counsel, such action had the tendency to undermine the judicial system and the powers of the court.
He, therefore, prayed the court to subject perpetrators to the powers of the court.
Mrs Mills-Tetteh said she had taken note of the concerns but advised counsel to raise the issues on the next adjourned date to enable other parties in the case to respond appropriately.
The court on November 2, 2010 refused bail for Amina and remanded her till yesterday, November 9, 2010, but her lawyers managed to secure bail for her at the Human Rights Court on Friday, November 5, 2010.
She was granted bail in the sum of GH¢5,000 with a surety by the court presided over by Mr Justice Paul U. Dery.
The brief facts of the case were that the accused person granted interviews to radio stations on October 26, 2010 and stated among other things that she was among passengers on a bus which was attacked by armed robbers when they reached Kintampo and that in the process the robbers ordered a mass rape of female occupants.
She was also quoted as saying a father was ordered to rape his 14-year-old daughter.
According to the prosecution, investigations revealed that such incident did not occur and said the driver of the said bus reported a case to the Ejisu Police and stated in his statement that his bus was nearly attacked by robbers at Kubease but he managed to escape with the destruction of his vehicle's windscreen due to gunshots.
The prosecution further stated that the driver of the bus drove off 30 minutes after reporting the incident, which occurred at about 10 p.m. on October 11, 2010.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Court orders reinstatement of two officials

Tuesday, November 9, 2010 (Page 3)

THE Human Rights Court in Accra yesterday ordered the Civil Service Council to reinstate two officials of the Ministry of Youth and Sports who accused a former minister of financial impropriety.
Granting an order of certiorari to quash the decision of the council to interdict Mr Adim Odoom, who was the ministry’s Principal Accountant, and Albert Kwadwo Agyepong, the then Chief Director, the court restrained the respondent from interdicting the two applicants on the same matter in future.
An Accra Fast Track High Court, in two separate rulings in November and December, 2009, declared that the directive from the President requesting for the interdiction of the two officials was unlawful and accordingly ordered their reinstatement and payment of their salary arrears.
However, when the two reported for work, they were not assigned any duties and subsequently, the Civil Service Council wrote to them asking them to explain their role in the disbursement of $20,000 alleged to have been paid to Alhaji Muntaka Mubarak, a former minister at the ministry.
Consequently, their solicitor, Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame, wrote to the Council enquiring whether that letter marked the commencement of disciplinary proceedings against the two applicants, but the Council did not reply.
The Council rather followed up with a letter interdicting the applicants on the grounds that their failure to respond to queries amounted to an interference with the investigations.
Following that action, Mr Dame filed an application against the Attorney-General seeking a declaration that the Council’s decision to interdict his clients was unlawful because disciplinary proceedings had not yet been commenced against his clients as required by the Civil Service Act.
He also prayed for an order of certiorari to quash the decision of the Council as well as grant an order of mandamus to compel the Council to allow the applicants to resume normal duties, as well as an order of prohibition restraining future interdiction of the applicants.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice U. P. Dery, granted all the reliefs on the grounds that the decision by the Council to interdict the applicants was unlawful because the right procedures were not followed.
He accordingly awarded costs of GH¢5,000 against the Council in favour of each of the applicants.
Messrs Odoom and Ampong were interdicted and ordered to proceed on leave on July 7, 2009 after National Security had investigated their allegations of financial impropriety against Alhaji Muntaka Mubarak, the then Minister of Youth and Sports.
Dissatisfied with the outcome of investigations and their subsequent interdiction, the two filed separate applications for judicial review, challenging their interdiction, which were granted by the Fast Track High Court.

Human Rights Court grants Amina bail

Saturday, November 6, 2010 (Page 3 Lead)

THE Human Rights Division of the Fast Track High Court yesterday granted bail to Amina Mohammed, the 24-year-old woman at the centre of the controversial Ejisu robbery and rape story.
She was granted bail in the sum of GH¢5,000 with a surety by the court, presided over by Mr Justice Paul U. Dery, after her lawyers had prayed the court to grant her bail.
The accused person was on Tuesday, November 2, 2010 refused bail and remanded by the Accra Circuit Court to reappear on November 9, 2010, but her lawyers on Wednesday afternoon filed an application for bail on her behalf at the Human Rights Court.
Granting the application for bail after the defence team and prosecution had advanced their arguments, the court held that charges levelled against Amina were misdemeanours and, therefore, bail ought to be granted.
The court directed Amina, who has been charged with two counts of publishing false news with intent to cause fear and panic and deceit of public officer to avail herself for trial.
She was not present in court.
Amina was alleged to have gone on radio stations last week to claim that she was a passenger on board a Tamale-bound bus in which female passengers were raped en masse by the men on board on the order of gun-wielding robbers on October 11, 2010.
She was alleged to have claimed that among the victims was a father who was made to have sex with his 14-year-old virgin daughter.
However, according to the prosecution, police investigations later revealed there was a near robbery at Ejisu in the Ashanti Region but the driver of the bus managed to escape that attack to report the matter to the police.
According to the police, her story caused extensive panic and fear among Ghanaians.
Making a case for his client at the court’s sitting in Accra yesterday, Mr Andy Appiah-Kubi informed the court that Amina was taken into police custody on October 30, 2010 and put before court 72 hours later instead of the mandatory 48 hours as stipulated by the 1992 Constitution.
Counsel argued that Amina was detained beyond 48 hours contrary to Article 14 (3) of the Constitution, which provides that a person shall be brought before court within 48 hours after arrest, restriction or detention.
He also argued that the police took statements from Amina without cautioning her as to her right to keep silent and to counsel and deceived her into believing she was a potential witness only to be turned into an accused person.
Mr Appiah-Kubi submitted that the evidence put forward by the prosecution did not suggest that Amina was among perpetrators of the crime, adding that she was also a victim and it was, therefore, unfortunate for the police to treat her in such a manner, especially after she had given them vital information as an informant.
According to counsel, Amina had never had a brush with the law, was a responsible mother of three, had substantial sureties to stand in for her when granted bail and would avail herself for trial.
He also submitted that Amina was most interested in pursuing the case to its logical conclusion in order to prove to all that the mass rape and robbery indeed took place.
Responding to the prosecution’s affidavit in opposition, counsel submitted that the prosecution attacked the processes filed by the defence counsel instead of reacting to the substance of the bail application.
He said the inaction of the prosecution concerning the bail application amounted to agreeing with the averments of the defence team.
Mr Appiah-Kubi said the accused person had been unlawfully treated by the state and for that reason the court should use its powers to protect the accused person.
Responding, the Director of Public Prosecutions, Ms Gertrude Aikins, said the prosecution asked for the detention of the accused person because it feared for her life, adding that “if we do not get thanked for protecting her, her safety will be on counsel”.
Her response drew a sharp rebuttal from Mr Appiah-Kubi, who questioned whether all persons had to be in custody before they could enjoy protection from the state.
The court earlier overruled a preliminary objection from the prosecution over the legal processes adopted by the defence team in filing its case.
When contacted, the lead counsel for Amina, Professor Ken Attafuah, told the Daily Graphic that the court’s ruling had been served on the Nima Divisional Command, where Amina was being kept.
He said the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Headquarters had also been served while the surety for Amina was on standby to sign the necessary documents.

Friday, November 5, 2010

POTAG strike: Court rules November 12

Friday, November 5, 2010 (Page 16/17)

THE Labour and Industrial Division of the Fast Track High Court will on Friday, November 12, 2010, decide whether or not to order members of the Polytechnic Teachers Association of Ghana (POTAG) to end their strike.
The court would also decide whether or not to grant a request from the NLC to order POTAG to submit itself to compulsory arbitration with the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC).
The presiding judge, Mr Justice Kwabena Asuman-Adu, fixed the date after lawyers for the National Labour Commission (NLC), which dragged POTAG to court, and POTAG had argued their cases.
Counsel for the NLC, Mr C. S. Sackey, said the POTAG strike was illegal because it failed to exhaust opportunities offered it by the NLC to resolve its differences with the FWSC.
For instance, he said the POTAG did not satisfy Section 159 of the Labour Act, which enjoined aggrieved parties to go on arbitration and where it failed, parties were expected to give a seven-day notice before embarking on any action.
Giving the background to the impasse between POTAG and the FWSC, Mr Sackey said on July 30, 2010, the leadership of POTAG wrote to the NLC for the commencement of negotiations on their conditions of service which POTAG said had expired since 2006.
Counsel for the NLC stated that POTAG served notice that if by August 13, 2010, nothing concrete had come out, it would not take responsibility for any unrest.
“We invited POTAG to attend a meeting on August 18, 2010 and on August 25, 2010, POTAG expressed its frustration with the FWSC and asked for suspension of migration of POTAG onto the Controller and Accountant General’s Department (CAGD) payroll,” Mr Sackey pointed out.
He continued that “in view of the seriousness we attach to the matter, we invited FWSC and POTAG for a meeting and at the hearing on September 8, 2010, the POTAG President confirmed to the NLC that POTAG was on a sit-down strike.
According to counsel, the NLC directed the FWSC to meet POTAG and report on September 22, 2010, adding that the NLC also directed POTAG to formally respond to a road map submitted to it by the FWSC.
Mr Sackey said at another meeting the NLC directed the two bodies to meet for re-evaluation of jobs at the Polytechnic, adding that the NLC ordered the two to go into compulsory arbitration on October 15, 2010.
Counsel argued that the NLC did not only order the POTAG to go back to the classroom but also directed FWSC to resolve all issues as far back as 2006.
He further submitted that the FWSC had not complained it was having difficulty negotiating with the POTAG and for that reason it was unfortunate and strange POTAG was rejecting NLC's offer, which it gave on a silver platter.
Quoting sections of the Bible to prove his point, counsel said the prayers of POTAG had been answered and it was, therefore, strange they were doubting it, adding that "POTAG is overwhelmed by the directive of the NLC".
His Biblical quotations, which dwelled on the story of Zachariah, who was doubtful after God had informed him in his old age that his elderly wife was going to have a son, drew a huge laughter from the audience in the courtroom when the presiding judge asked him to quote the section of the Bible which touched on that story. Mr Sackey obliged and cited Luke 1:13.
Mr Sackey, then prayed the court to order POTAG to go back to the classroom and submit themselves to compulsory arbitration with the FWSC.
Opposing his colleague's application, counsel for the POTAG, Mr Samspon Obeng, described the application as incompetent and without merit and stated that POTAG's position was that its terms and conditions of service had expired since 2006.
"We have addressed series of correspondence asking them to initiate processes to ensure negotiation take place. We, through the NLC, tried to engage the FWSC but the FWSC flatly refused to negotiate with POTAG on the grounds that it would affect the smooth implementation of a new salary scheme," Mr Obeng pointed out.
"All we ask for is to let negotiations begin. Instead of acting as independent arbiter, you issue directive asking us to enter into compulsory voluntary arbitration," counsel submitted in apparent reference to the NLC's directive to the POTAG.
He said the NLC arranged for a meeting between POTAG and FWSC on Wednesday and "to our shock and dismay, NLC failed to provide a credible road map. The NLC has not done anything to show FWSC is in a position to negotiate with us".
Mr Obeng argued that the POTAG asked for a road map to negotiate but it was rather provided with a road map to its migration onto the single spine salary structure.
Counsel submitted that it was rather the FWSC and not the POTAG that was unwilling to negotiate and further prayed the court to decline the NLC's request.

Prophet Onetouch denies fabricating Efo Emma's story

November 4, 2010 (Page 3)

THE Founder and General Overseer of the Jesus Blood Prophetic Ministry, Prophet Nana Kofi Yirenkyi, aka Prophet Onetouch, yesterday denied fabricating a story to the effect that his daughter who he had been accused of defiling was rather defiled by his security man.
According to the accused person, a witness had caught his daughter and his security man whose name he only gave as Efo Emma in a compromising position and that resulted in he (Prophet Onetouch) reporting the matter to the police on August 3, 2009.
Answering questions under cross-examination from Ms Helen Kwawukume, a Chief State Attorney, the accused person said even the victim’s mother was aware of what transpired between Efo Emma and the victim only for the victim’s mother to turn around and lodge a complaint against him (Prophet Onetouch) on March 2, 2010.
Prophet Onetouch has pleaded not guilty to one count of incest and has since been refused bail by the circuit court, presided over by Mrs Georgina Mensah-Datsa.
Speaking in Twi, Prophet Onetouch said Efo Emma joined his household three years after he had been healed of a 17-year-old boil after attending his (Prophet Onetouch) church.
According to the accused person, Efo Emma was elated after being healed of his sickness and he reciprocated by weeding and ironing for him (accused person).
He said Efo Emma, who is in his 50s, later became a member of his household until August, 2010, when it came to his (accused person’s) notice that Efo Emma was defiling his daughter.
The accused person, therefore, denied an assertion from the prosecution that Efo Emma did not exist.
He vehemently denied a suggestion from the prosecution that he defiled his daughter, adding that it was also not true he wiped fluid after his sexual encounter with the victim with a handkerchief.
According to the accused person, his daughter could no longer look at him in the eye because she had fabricated a grave story against him, her own blood.
He said she started rebelling against him not because he was defiling her but because she was exhibiting bad behaviour which he did not approve of.
Prophet Onetouch told the court that he was speaking the truth and God was his witness.
He has since completed his testimony and is expected to call a witness on the next adjourned date.
The case was adjourned to November 29, 2010 at the instance of the prosecution.

Counsel for Amina applies for bail

Thursday, November 4, 2010 (Page 3 Lead)

LAWYERS for Amina Mohammed, the 21-year-old woman at the centre of the Ejisu robbery and rape story, have filed an application for bail at the Human Rights Court.
Amina was refused bail and remanded by the Accra Circuit Court on Tuesday to reappear on November 9, 2010 but her lawyers, led by Mr Andy Appiah-Kubi, yesterday afternoon filed an application for bail on behalf of their client at the Human Rights Court.
The defence team, which described the circuit court’s decision to remand Amina as a “miscarriage of justice”, is expected to move the motion for bail on Friday, November 5, 2010.
Amina has pleaded not guilty to two counts of publishing false news with intent to cause fear and panic and deceit of public officer.
Defence lawyers are praying the Human Rights Court to quash the decision of the circuit court and admit their client to bail “on very reasonable terms”.
Amina was alleged to have gone on radio stations last week to claim that she was a passenger on board a Tamale-bound bus in which female passengers were raped en masse by the men on board under the watch of gun-wielding robbers on October 11, 2010.
Among the victims, she is alleged to have claimed, was a father who was made to have sex with his 14-year-old virgin daughter.
However, according to the prosecution, police investigations later revealed there was a near robbery at Ejisu in the Ashanti Region but the driver of the bus managed to escape to report the matter to the police.
According to the police, her story caused extensive panic and fear among Ghanaians. They have also accused her of giving false statement to the police.
An affidavit in support of the application for bail sworn on behalf of the accused person by Mr Appiah-Kubi said Amina was taken into police custody in Accra on Saturday, October 29, 2010 around 2.00 pm. where the police took statements from her without cautioning her as to her right to silence and counsel.
It said Amina was detained beyond 48 hours contrary to Article 14 (3) of the Constitution, which provides that a person shall be brought before court within 48 hours after arrest, restriction or detention.
The affidavit in support further pointed out that charges levelled against Amina were misdemeanours which were bailable. It said the circuit court in declining bail to the accused person did not give reasons for its decision.
It stated that the accused person had a fixed place of abode, had substantial sureties, as well as would make herself available for trial when granted bail by the Human Rights Court.
It gave an assurance that the accused person, who is a mother of three infant children, would not interfere in investigations when granted bail.
According to the affidavit in support, her continuous detention would seriously affect her well-being and that of her children who depend solely on her for their sustenance.

Police awaits autopsy report on missionary

November 4, 2010 (Page 51)

THE police are awaiting autopsy report on Reverend Sydney Thomas Barnes, an American missionary who was murdered on his farm at Akwamu-Amanfo, near Nsawam, on March 18, 2010 by his driver and two others.
Kofi Seidu, the driver and farm manager of the deceased, who confessed to the crime and led police officers to exhume the deceased’s body on October 11, 2010, cited Pastor Goodwill Padmore, Principal of Prestige Secretarial and Business Academy, and Issaka Mohammed, a mason, as his accomplices.
The three, who were first arraigned at the Accra District Magistrate's Court presided over by Mr Kofi Ahiabor, on October 19, 2010, were yesterday remanded to reappear on November 16, 2010.
At the court's sitting in Accra yesterday, the prosecutor of the case, Mr Cletus Adamlura, prayed the court to remand the accused persons because the autopsy report on the deceased was not ready.
The accused persons have been charged with two counts of conspiracy and murder.
Their pleas have not been taken.
The facts of the case are that the deceased was the founder of the Cross Road Christian Mission Inc and Proprietor of Prestige Secretarial and Computer School, both in Koforidua, where he had lived since 1997, and also owned the Manna Mission Farms at Akwamu-Amanfo.
He said on December 12, 2009, Rev Barnes proceeded on leave and, as was his usual practice, travelled to the US on holidays and was due back on March 18, 2010. Seidu, who had been in the employment of the deceased for the past 12 years, was asked to pick him from the airport.
The prosecutor said Pastor Padmore dispatched Seidu from Koforidua to Accra to pick the deceased from the Kotoka International Airport with a Land Rover vehicle with registration number WR 418 P.
According to the prosecution, Seidu called Padmore on phone around 11:30 p.m. on March 18, 2010 and informed him that Rev. Barnes had not arrived.
Seidu allegedly drove the said Land Rover to Nsawam Adoagyiri and on arrival, a witness in the case detected that Seidu had sustained injuries on both hands.
The prosecution said Seidu told the witness, who had enquired about the cause of the injuries, that he (Seidu) was involved in an accident with a Caucasian friend who was on admission at the St. Joseph Hospital in Koforidua.
On that same day, Seidu gave a laptop to a witness in the case to open for him and upon booting the laptop, the picture of the deceased appeared on the screen.
A tourist bag believed to be the property of the deceased was also found in the Land Rover and upon enquiry, Seidu told the witness that the bag belonged to the Caucasian friend of his.
Following the disappearance of Rev. Barnes, a complaint was lodged with the police, who eventually effected the arrest of Seidu.
During interrogation, Seidu allegedly confessed to killing Rev. Barnes and mentioned Pastor Padmore and Mohammed as his accomplices.
Seidu eventually led a team of police officers from the Homicide Unit and pathologists from the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital to Akwamu-Amanfo, where he identified the grave in which he had buried Rev. Barnes.
On October 13, 2010, pathologists performed an autopsy on Rev. Barnes’s body but are yet to submit their report.

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Rape, robbery case in court - AMINA ON REMAND • Attafuah, Appiah-Kubi outraged

Wednesday, November 3, 2010 (Lead Story)

LAWYERS for Amina Mohammed, the 21-year-old woman at the centre of the Ejisu robbery and rape story have filed an application for bail at the Human Rights Court.
Amina was refused bail and remanded by the Accra Circuit Court on Tuesday to reappear on November 9, 2010 but her lawyers, led by Mr Andy Appiah-Kubi, yesterday afternoon, filed an application for bail on behalf of their client at the Human Rights Court.
The defence team, which described the circuit court’s decision to remand Amina as a “miscarriage of justice” is expected to move the motion for bail on Friday, November 5, 2010.
Amina has pleaded not guilty to two counts of publishing false news with intent to cause fear and panic and deceit of public officer.
Defence lawyers are praying the Human Rights Court to quash the decision of the circuit court and admit their client to bail “on very reasonable terms.”
Amina was alleged to have gone on radio stations last week to claim that she was a passenger on board a Tamale-bound passenger bus in which female passengers were raped en masse by the men on board under the watch of gun-wielding robbers on October 11, 2010.
Among the victims, she is alleged to have claimed, was a father who was made to have sex with his 14-year-old virgin daughter.
However, according to the prosecution, police investigations later revealed there was a near robbery at Ejisu in the Ashanti Region but the driver of the bus managed to escape to report the matter to the police.
According to the police, her story caused extensive panic and fear among Ghanaians. They have also accused her of giving false statement to the police.
An affidavit in support of the application for bail sworn on behalf of the accused person by Mr Appiah-Kubi said Amina was taken into police custody in Accra on Saturday, October 29, 2010 around 2.00 pm. where the police took statements from her without cautioning her as to her right to silence and counsel.
It said Amina was detained beyond 48 hours contrary to Article 14 (3) of the Constitution which provides that a person shall be brought before court within 48 hours after arrest, restriction or detention.
The affidavit in support further pointed out that charges levelled against Amina were misdemeanours which were bailable. It said the circuit court in declining bail to the accused person did not give reasons for its decision.
It stated that the accused person had a fixed place of abode, had substantial sureties as well as would avail herself for trial when granted bail by the Human Rights Court.
It gave assurance that the accused person, who is a mother of three infant children would not interfere in investigations when granted bail.
According to the affidavit in support, her continuous detention would seriously affect her well-being and that of her children who depend solely on her for their sustenance.

Prosecution in Ya-Na's murder trial to close case

Wednesday, November 3, 2010 (Page 3)

THE prosecution in the Ya-Na murder case yesterday informed the Accra Fast Track High Court that it would close its case if its witnesses did not avail themselves by Friday, November 5, 2010.
According to a Principal State Attorney, Mr Anthony Atadzi, witnesses who were expected to appear before the court and testify were still in transit in Tamale.
He said a Deputy Commissioner of Police in-charge of the case called him this morning and informed him that the witnesses were in transit in Tamale and for that reason the prosecution decided to inform the court of the latest development in order not to waste the court's time.
He said even if they (witnesses) had arrived in the course of the court's sitting, it would have been impossible for them to testify yesterday because the prosecution would have to hold conference with them first.
"Whether they come or not, we will humbly let our case rest on Friday," Mr Atadzi informed the court.
Responding to the prosecution's submissions, counsel for the accused persons, Mr Atta Akyea, said he did not blame the Attorney-General's office because it was the police who were supposed to liaise with the prosecution.
He, however, wondered why the witnesses should be in transit when they were supposed to have testified yesterday and added that the defence would pin the prosecution down on its word on Friday.
Mr Akyea also reminded the prosecution that the Constitution placed importance on the liberties of persons standing trial.
The case was accordingly adjourned to Friday, November 5, 2010, by the court, presided over by Mr Justice E. K. Ayebi.
The prosecution has so far called 12 witnesses in the case in which 15 persons are standing trial for playing various roles resulting in the murder of the Ya-Na.
The accused persons are Iddrisu Iddi, alias Mbadugu; Alhaji Baba Abdulai, alias Zohe; Kwame Alhassan, alias Achiri; Mohammed Abdulai, alias Samasama; Sayibu Mohammed; Alhassan Braima and Zakaria Yakubu, alias Zakaria Forest, who is currently on the run.
The rest are Mohammed Habib Tijani, the former District Chief Executive of Yendi; Baba Ibrahim, alias Baba Zey; Alhassan Mohammed, alias Mohammed Cheampon; Mohammed Mustapha; Shani Imoro; Yakubu Yusif, alias Leftee; Hammed Abukari Yussif and Abdul Razak Yussif, alias Nyaa Dagbani.
All the accused persons, except Zakaria Yakubu, have been charged with conspiracy to murder and have pleaded not guilty to the charge. Zakaria has been charged with murder.

Sale of Ghana Airways - Richard Anane, 4 others to reappear on November 29

November 29, 2010 (Page 3 lead)

THE case involving five persons who have been accused of causing financial loss to the state in the sale of Ghana Airways and the operations of Ghana International Airline (GIA) has been adjourned to November 29, 2010.
The Financial Division of the Fast Track High Court adjourned the case to a specific date after it declined to grant defence counsel’s plea for an indefinite adjournment.
Dr Jacob Acquah Sampson, counsel for Dr Richard Anane, a former Minister of Transport, had prayed the court to adjourn the case indefinitely because his client’s appeal against the court’s earlier refusal to refer the defence team’s request for relevant documents on the case to the Supreme Court for interpretation had been adjourned indefinitely.
According to counsel, the Court of Appeal adjourned the case indefinitely at the instance of the prosecution and for that reason, the High Court should also adjourn indefinitely.
The presiding judge, Mr Justice Bright Mensah, however, declined to grant the defence counsel’s request and accordingly adjourned the case to November 29, 2010.
Dr Anane and Dr Anthony Akoto Osei, a former Minister of State at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, filed an appeal against the Fast Track High Court’s refusal to refer their request for relevant documents on the case to the Supreme Court for interpretation.
Lawyers for the two filed the appeal against the Financial Division of the Fast Track High Court, which, on July 16, 2010, refused to refer the matter to the Supreme Court on the grounds that the issues raised by the accused persons did not border on the Constitution.
Those charged alongside the two are Kwadwo Mpiani, a former Chief of Staff and Minister for Presidential Affairs; Sammy Crabbe, a former Greater Accra Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), and Prof. George Gyan-Baffour, a former deputy minister at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning.
All the accused persons were in court together with their lawyers but there was no representation from the prosecution when the case was called.
They variously face 22 counts of causing financial loss to the state, defrauding by false pretences, conspiracy to deceive public officers, deceit of public officer, misappropriation of public funds, opening an offshore account without authorisation from the Bank of Ghana (BoG), conspiracy to commit stealing and stealing.
They have pleaded not guilty to the charges and have been granted self-recognisance bail.
The accused persons had requested for relevant documents to aid their defence under Article 19 (2e) of the 1992 Constitution, which states that “a person charged with criminal offence shall be given adequate time and facilities for the preparation of his defence”.
But the State opposed the application on the grounds that sections 163 and 181 of the Criminal Procedure Code of 1960 (Act 30) did not allow accused persons standing trial summarily to have access to such documents before they were tendered in evidence as exhibits.
Giving its ruling on July 16, 2010, the court upheld the State’s submissions and accordingly ordered the accused persons to present themselves for trial in the court.