Bawku Central MP's case - Hearing adjourned

Tuesday, June 28, 2011 (Page 3 Lead)

THE nationality trial involving the Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, Adamu Daramani Sakande, was today adjourned because the prosecutor in the case is out of the jurisdiction.
A Chief State Attorney, Mrs Merley Wood, informed the court when the case was called that the substantive prosecutor, Mr Rexford Wiredu, was outside the country and accordingly, prayed the court to adjourn the case.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Charles Quist, adjourned the case to July 18, 2011.
The court had on June 8, 2011, granted the prosecution leave to recall a witness, if it wished to do so in order to clarify what it termed “ambiguity” arising from the evidence of the MP and documents from the National Security Secretariat (NSS) which said the MP had not renounced his nationality status.
However, the court refused to allow the prosecution to prevail upon the MP to identify an alleged authenticated version of documents he (the MP) had earlier tendered in evidence to prove that he had renounced his British citizenship before seeking to be elected MP.
Although the prosecution had not formally put up any application praying the court to grant it leave to recall a witness months after closing its case, the trial judge, Mr Justice Charles Quist, devoted a major part of his ruling to why the prosecution could recall a witness to rebut the MP’s claims, citing authorities.
Giving its ruling on an application by counsel for the MP, Mr Yonny Kulendi, on his opposition to moves by the prosecution to cast doubt on his client’s defence, the court held that Section 111 of the Criminal Procedure and Other Offences Act gave the court the mandate to allow the prosecution to recall witnesses.
After the ruling, the court declined to grant the defence team’s request for a short adjournment to enable it (defence team) to study the ruling for the necessary action to be taken.
The MP was, on July 31, 2009, arraigned before the court, charged with nine counts relating to his nationality, perjury, forgery of passport, election fraud and deceiving public officers to be elected as an MP but was exonerated on six of those charges on July 8, 2010.
He is currently facing three charges of false declaration of office or voting, perjury and deceiving a public officer.