Following a leaked band and the actualization of WhatsApp conversations that active the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, in what abounding beheld to be a case of attestant tampering, Ato Forson and Richard Jakpa filed a case at the High Court, gluttonous a cessation of the case on the area that the state, represented by the Attorney-General, had not accustomed acceptable area for the prosecution.
The acquiescence of no case filed by Ato Forson and Richard Jakpa was alone by the High Cloister presided by Amends Afia Serwah Asare-Botwe, which accountable the two accused to booty the amount up at the Appeals Court.
The Cloister of Appeal, in a aperture 2-1 decision, accepted the motion of no case filed by Minority Leader Ato Forson and agent Richard Jakpa in the ambulance accretion trial.
In the ruling, a archetype of which is accessible to GhanaWeb, the three justices fabricated absorbing allegation and arguments for their corresponding decisions.
The court, in its decision, consistently disqualified that the altercation produced by the state, which in this case is the Attorney-General, was not abundant for the case to canyon the aboriginal date and go to trial.
GhanaWeb gives you the absolute animadversion of all three justices.
Amends Kwaku T. Ackah-Boafo
"Based on the aloft assay and in allegiance to the law, I am of the assessment that the appeals filed by both the 1st and 3rd Appellants should succeed. In the result, I would acquiesce the appeals, and the cardinal of the balloon cloister anachronous March 30, 2023, calling on the 1st Appellant to accessible his defence in account of the accuse in counts 1 and 5, is hereby set aside.
"Also, the alarm on the 3rd Appellant to accessible his defence in account of the allegation in calculation 3 is set aside. In their place, an adjustment advancement the acquiescence of no case entered for both the 1st and 3rd Appellants in account of those three counts in the allegation area is issued. Consequently, both Appellants are hereby acquitted and discharged."
Amends Philip Bright Mensah
Amends Philip Bright Mensah fabricated some conclusions, including the actuality that the prosecution, which is the Auditor-General, did not accredit a prima facie case adjoin Ato Forson and Richard Jakpa, and accordingly the High Cloister erred by advancement the altercation of the state.
He alone the case of the Attorney-General that Ato Forson issued the belletrist of acclaim after the allotment of the again Finance Minister Seth Tekper, acquainted that affirmation adduced by Ato Forson and adventures by Seth Tekper announce that he was acquainted of Ato Forson’s actions.
Parts of his cardinal read: “To accomplish on the allegation that the 1st Accused/appellant acted after account and authorization, the best affirmation to accredit it was for the case to accept arrive the absolute Minister, Hon. Seth Tekper, accepting attention to the affirmation it was done on his dark side.
"I am of the advised assessment that Seth Tekper was a actual attestant whose affirmation would accept absitively the case one way or the other. Failure to allure him was baleful to the case of the prosecution.
"For, the law is able-bodied acclimatized that if there is a basic point in affair and there is one attestant whose affirmation would achieve it one way or the other, that attestant is a actual attestant that care to be alleged to activity evidence.
"There is that affirmation on almanac in our present case that in the advance of investigations into the matter, Hon. Seth Tekper is said to accept volunteered a account to Investigator, PW5 in this case that seems to advance that the address for the enactment of the LCs was done on account of the Ministry of Finance. For purposes of clarity, I carbon excerpts of the statement, Exhibit 5: aloft cancellation of the Attorney-General's opinion, MoF [Ministry of Finance] proceeded to accredit the LC. The letter acclaimed that this was a accurate contract.
“By this autonomous account to the Investigator, Mr. Seth Tekper was actual abundant acquainted of the accomplish the appellant took in requesting the enactment of the LC to avoid the blackmail of approaching activity adjoin the Government of Ghana for aperture of contract. There is no atom of affirmation on almanac to appearance that if indeed, the belletrist the appellant wrote were done on his dark side, Mr. Tekper repudiated the aforementioned or he queried the appellant for what he did. It cannot be absent on this cloister that it is the Ministry of Finance that has the sole ability and or assignment to address for or accredit LCs to be accustomed on account of government Ministries and Departments. The case witness, PW4 in his affirmation to the balloon cloister as actualization on p. 354 VOL 1 [roa] accepted that that was the appropriate action to follow.
"Therefore, the anticipation is that the appellant had the ascendancy to do what he did and followed the able procedure.
"In the result, I about disagree with the abstruse balloon adjudicator to accept rubbished and or alone Exhibit 5 adage that the columnist of that account has not been subjected to cross-examination. I anticipate that the lower cloister fell into austere absurdity occasioning a gross abortion of amends to the appellant because his assignment is alone to accession agnosticism in the case of the prosecution. On the authorities, if there was a agnosticism in the case of the case it shall accustom to the favour of the accused.
“It is adorning to beam that Hon. Agyeman-Manu in his affirmation to the balloon cloister on 21/07/2022, accepted that the appellant affected Hon. Seth Tekper of anniversary letter he wrote in affiliation with the address for the enactment of the LC. From these pieces of evidence, it can cautiously be accepted that the Minister was acquainted and accustomed the accomplish the appellant took. In the circumstances, I disagree with the allegation of the lower cloister that the appellant has the assignment to prove the acknowledging that he acclimatized due account and authorization. Accepting attention to the aloft analysis, I do advocate the submissions of abstruse Counsel for 1st accused/appellant canvassed in account of Calculation 1.
Consequently, I acquiesce the address on Calculation 1.”
Amends Alex Poku Acheampong was the one who dissented to the angle of the majority and alone the acquiescence of no case by Ato Forson and Richard Jakpa.
In his judgment, he disqualified that the accompaniment did not accept to prove above reasonable agnosticism for the case to be held. Rather, the accompaniment had to accredit abundant area for the balloon to bang start, and he believes the High Cloister fabricated the appropriate accommodation by abnegation the acquiescence of no case from Ato Forson and Richard Jakpa.
His absolute animadversion read: “I achieve accordingly that the balloon Adjudicator did not err in cardinal that 3rd Accused has a case to answer. In my opinion, the acquiescence of no case in account of 3rd Accused was accurately alone by the balloon Judge. 3rd Accused/Appellant has a case to acknowledgment calm with the 1st Accused/Appellant. I accept in accession at this accommodation discussed all the bristles area of address of the 3rd Appellant and I achieve that they are not meritorious. In conclusion, the abstruse balloon Adjudicator did not err in her cardinal that 1st Appellant and 3rd Appellant accept a case to answer.”
Read the abounding cardinal below
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