Leebda Corporation is not known in Texas - Witness
A-G, AMA and its former Chief Executive sued for demolishing hotel
Appeal court says Mallam Isa has case to answer
High seas smugglers remanded in custody
Accra (Greater Accra) 26 June 2001
Mr Jeff Edward Musoru, investigator in the case in which Victor Selormey, former Deputy Minister of Finance, is charged with wilfully causing financial loss of 1.3 million dollars to the state, on Monday told the Fast Track High Court that there is no company called Leebda Corporation based in Texas, US.
Mr Musoru, a police officer, who is the sixth witness for the prosecution in the case, said the Texas Secretary of State told him through the Ghana Embassy in US that Leebda does not exist.
He said the corporation is not known in the US, so far as records on corporate bodies are concerned.
Witness was giving evidence in the Court Computerisation Project case, in which Selormey is additionally charged with conspiracy and defrauding by false pretences.
Selormey has pleaded not guilty and is on a 1.5 billion-cedi bail.
The Fast Track Court is presided over by Justice Sam G. Baddoo, an Appeal Court Judge sitting as an additional High Court Judge.
Mr Musoru said the Texas Secretary indicated that "Leebda simply stands for law, economics, engineering, business and development associates."
Mr Musoru said he conducted an enquiry on Leebda at the US Embassy, which also contacted an institution called Dun and Brad Street, which is a data based company that keeps records of public files.
Witness said this institution responded through the Ghana Embassy in US. He also tendered a contract document between VMS International and the Ministry of Justice in evidence saying the Chief Director of the Ministry of Justice gave it to him during his investigations.
The witness said that contract document was signed for Ghana by Nana Ntsefu on behalf of the Legal Sector Co-ordinating Committee while Mr Kwadwo O.
Agyemang, Project Director signed for VMS International.
He said the contract was about the Court Computerisation Project Production and Dissemination of Legal Information, including electronic courtroom recordings.
He said the contract, which was a private sector development project, was signed on May 12, 1997.
According to him, there was a covering letter, which was dated April 10, 1999 and was addressed to the Chief Director. The letter stated that 33,970.90 dollars, which was 20 per cent of the contract amount, should be remitted into their account at ECOBANK.
Answering questions during cross-examination, Mr Musoru told the court that several attempts to contact Leebda, "even this morning have failed."
He said he found the telephone number on a letterhead in a letter, which Dr Frederick Owusu Boadu wrote.
Witness disagreed with defence counsel, Mr Barimah Manu and Mr Kwaku Baah that someone else apart from the Secretary of State for Texas should tell him the meaning of Leebda.
He contended that the meaning of Leebda was from a reliable source.
When asked if he found out whether the comment of the accused was sought before preparing the audit report, witness said this was not disclosed to him.
The investigator said the audit report dated April 25, 2001, covered the period of April 1997 and March 2001.
He said on page 5, paragraph 3, it was stated that they noticed two separate payments of 432,400 dollars and 865,000 dollars, totalling 1,297,500 had been transferred to Dr. Boadu in the US for services for computerisation projects.
Mr Musoru said the auditors indicated that the payments were made through ECOBANK, hence his investigations at ECOBANK where he retrieved the letters in which the accused authorised payments.
He disagreed with counsel that one of the letters for the contract was sent to Leebda/Owusu Agyapong and that "I got to know of this in the court room."
He said he did not know that Leebda/Owusu Agyapong was awarded any contract.
Witness said in the discharge of his duties, he came across an assemblage of papers including the contract document.
Hearing continues on Tuesday, June 26.
GRi../
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Accra (Greater Accra) 26 June 2001
The owner of the 65-room Pier Hotel at the Airport Residential Area in Accra, which was demolished in April 1999, has sued the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) and its former Chief Executive, Mr Addokwei Addo and the Attorney-General for damages.
The suit filed on May 23 at the Fast-Track Court said the demolition of the hotel worth more than five million dollars was illegal and constituted a trespass and unlawful interference with the owner's civil and constitutional rights.
Alhaji Yusif Ibrahim, Executive Chairman of Dara Salaam Group and owner of the hotel, told the Ghana News Agency in Accra on Monday that the suit was filed on his behalf by his counsel, Mr Jacob Acquah-Sampson.
Mr Acquah-Sampson said the Attorney -General was a co-defendant in the suit because the 48 Engineers' Regiment of the Ghana Armed Forces was used in the demolition exercise.
The Regiment, he said, used their own equipment including bulldozers, excavators and explosives.
The AMA and its former Chief Executive directed the exercise, he said.
Mr Acquah-Sampson said the case has not yet been called and none of the defendants has yet filed a defence.
The plaintiffs are claiming the replacement value of the hotel, including fittings and fixtures worth about five million dollars and the replacement of supplies and stores worth 150,000 dollars.
He explained that the demolition was done without notice to the owner although he had applied for a rezoning permit as the area was considered as a storm drain, which the Hydraulic Services Department of the Ministry of Works and Housing had approved for the project after technical advice on the structural and drainage works.
He said the Police, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Ghana National Fire Service had also given their approval for the building of the hotel.
Mr Acquah-Sampson said AMA itself had directed that once the place was a hotel the adjoining plot could be acquired for adequate car parking space.
He said the hotel was demolished 12 days after the plot, which belonged to Colonel Ebenezer Tetteh Oklah (rtd), was acquired.
GRi../
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Accra (Greater Accra) 26 June 2001
The Criminal Division of the Appeal Court in Accra on Monday ruled that Mallam Ali Yusuf Isa, former Minister of Youth and Sports, has a case to answer.
The court, therefore, ordered that he should appear before the Fast Track Court, which is trying him to open his defence on July 7.
By unanimous decision of the court presided over by Justice J. S. Brobbey the two applications filed by counsel of the appellant, Mr Ambrose Dery, were dismissed. Other members of the court were Mr Justice Sam G. Baddoo and Mr Justice J.C. Amonoo-Monney.
Mallam Isa is charged with stealing 46,000 dollars belonging to the Ghana Football Association (GFA) and fraudulently causing financial loss to the state.
He has pleaded not guilty and has been admitted to a 500 million-cedi bail. As part of the bail bond, the accused was also ordered by the court to deposit a landed property at the registry of the court.
The appellant on May 24 filed an interlocutory appeal at the Court of Appeal for an order to stay proceedings in the case pending the determination of the appeal he had filed against the overruling of two objections.
The interlocutory appeal was against the over-ruling of a preliminary objection against the second count of fraudulently causing financial loss to the state and the submission of no case after the prosecution closed its case on May 24.
The court, which disposed of the two appeals and also dismissed the stay of proceedings, asked the appellant to go to the High Court to show where the 46,000 dollars was.
The court said by its ruling, it does not say that Mallam Isa has stolen or spent the 46,000 dollars, and has also not found him guilty of the offence.
It stated that matters of fact and findings of fact are within the jurisdiction of the trial judge.
The court noted that the act of charging an accused person is not done in the courtroom, but at the police station. It said the accused person assisted in police investigations before he was arraigned before the high court.
It said the accused person wrote a five-page statement in his own hand and the charge was read to him at the court where he pleaded not guilty.
According to the court, the appellant had adequate knowledge and understanding of the charges preferred against him before going to the court and there was no need to have defined the charge to him before going to court.
The court explained that "financial loss means financial loss" and does not have any micro-economic meaning.
Defence Counsel had earlier argued that a person charged shall be informed of the offence before he is arrested.
He quoted extensively from the Court of Appeal Rule CI 21 of 1998 and Rule 27 and 28 (CI 19) of 1997 to support his reasons why the Fast Track Court presided over by Justice Julius Ansah, sitting as an additional High Court judge, must uphold his motion.
He told the Appeal Court that count two, "fraudulently causing financial loss to the state," does not specify any action or omission at all on the part of the accused, which fraudulently caused the loss of 46,000 dollars.
He argued that the act or omission constitutes contempt, but "admittedly what amounts to fraudulent action or omission is not defined."
He contended that Article 19 (11) of the Constitution requires that criminal offence must be defined.
Counsel argued that no person shall be prosecuted on criminal offence unless the offence shall be defined.
In his reply Mr Osafo Sampong, Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) said he did not see why the appellant went to the Appeal Court.
Mr Sampong said the trial judge at the lower court took pains to go through the matter before coming to a conclusion that the accused had a case to answer.
The DPP said the prosecution has established that Mallam Isa dishonestly misappropriated the money entrusted to him.
GRi../
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Sekondi (Western Region) 26 June 2001
Six persons arrested on the high seas on Monday appeared before the Sekondi Community Tribunal charged with conspiracy to smuggle, smuggling and possession of Indian hemp.
They were Kwamena Esuo, Ishamael Nyan, Kweku Tetteh, Abdul Raham Obidja, Ebenezer Amoah Koomson and Kwabena Moses.
Their pleas were not taken and were remanded in custody to reappear on July 2.
Prosecuting, Police Sergeant Andam Okyere said they were arrested on the high seas at Aboadze, near Sekondi on June 16 but declined to give the full facts of the case until the Police completes its investigations.
He, therefore, prayed the tribunal to commit them to remand. The tribunal, chaired by Mr Eric Baah refused defence counsel's plea for bail.
GRi../
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Koforidua (Eastern Region) 26 June 2001
A Koforidua Circuit Tribunal has granted five suspected drug dealers a total 50 million cedis bail with a sureties to be justified for allegedly possessing narcotic drugs.
The five accused persons, whose pleas were not taken, included Justice Ismaila Boateng, Amidu Issah, Kwadwo Antwi, Sumaila Awudu and Johnson Kofi Owusu.
They were arrested on June 18, by a team of Police personnel from the Eastern Regional Police Narcotic Unit during separate swoops in some selected towns in the region.
The tribunal, presided over by Mr G. S Suurbaareh, ordered them to reappear on July 3.
GRi../
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