Two appear in court in connection with loss of relief items
Supreme Court rules in favour of Banda Ahenkro Royal Family
Isa's Counsel files appeal and motion to stay proceedings
Sekondi (Western Region) 29 May 2001
Mr Andrew Sosu, a 47 year old accountant of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) and Thomas Cudjoe 52, a storekeeper at the Shama Ahanta East Metropolitan Assembly (SAEMA), on Monday appeared before a Sekondi Circuit Tribunal charged with stealing relief items valued at 29.6 million cedis belonging to NADMO.
The items are 351 blankets, 54 student’s mattresses, 158 plastic plates, 14 buckets, three plastic basins, a bale of used clothing, 305 pairs of Wellington boots and 176 pieces of roofing sheets.
They pleaded not guilty and were each granted 20 million cedis bail with one surety to reappear on June 18.
The court presided over by Mr Frederick Miezah-Anyimah heard that NADMO does not have a warehouse and keeps all its relief materials at the SAEMA stores at Sekondi.
Sosu and Cudjoe were put in charge of the stocks and signed all documents in relation to their receipt and distribution.
The Prosecution said all waybills covering any relief item, is photocopied and the originals are sent to the NADMO headquarters in Accra for record purposes.
However, when auditors were dispatched from Accra on February 25 to the SAEMA stores, the items could not be accounted for and the accused persons were arrested.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 29 May 2001
Osabarima Okokyeredom Kwadwo Sito I, Omanhene of the Banda Traditional Area, said at the weekend that the Supreme Court ruling declaring the Banda Ahenkro Royal Family as eligible to occupy the Banda Stool should pave the way for positive
development of the area.
In a telephone interview with the Ghana News Agency, the Omanhene said the decision of the court must unite rather than divide the people.
Osabarima Sito stated that the Banda area abounds in a lot of natural resources that must be exploited to enhance the well being of the people.
He expressed regret that the longstanding dispute between the Ahenkro and Kabrono royal families had stalled development for more than two decades and called on all to co-operate to make the Banda Traditional Area a showpiece of unity and development.
The Banda Ahenkro and Kabrono Royal Families have been embroiled in a long-standing dispute, sometimes resulting in serious clashes, over the rightful occupant of the Banda stool, which rotates between the two royal houses.
After the death in 1997 of Nana Kwadwo Wurosa from the Kabrono Royal family, the people of Ahenkro installed a new chief.
The elders of Kabrono, led by Mr Kwadwo Fordjour, however, filed a petition at the Sunyani High Court asking it to restrain the people of Ahenkro from nominating and installing a new chief.
The petition was on the grounds that their nominee, Nana Wurosa, did not get the chance to perform the necessary rites as a chief.
The court ruled in favour of Kabrono but the elders of Ahenkro filed an ex-parte motion at the Supreme Court challenging the decision.
The petitioners, claimed that the Banda Paramountcy rotates between the two royal families and that it was, therefore, their turn to occupy the stool.
However, the defendants contended that the last occupant from their family, Nana Wurosa, was not recognised by the Ahenkro Royal Family.
The Supreme Court, however, dismissed the motion for lack of merit.
This compelled the Ahenkro Royal Family to file a civil appeal at the Supreme Court, praying it to restrain the Kabrono family from installing a new chief.
A five-member Supreme Court panel chaired by Mr Justice A. K. B. Ampiah sitting on Wednesday, May 16, in Accra unanimously ruled in favour of the Banda Ahenkro Royal Family.
The court allowed the civil appeal in favour of the petitioners, the Ahenkro Family, that it was justified.
It also awarded four million cedis cost against the defendants, the Kabrono Family.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 29 May 2001
Defence Counsel for Mallam Ali Yusuf Isa, ex-Minister of Youth and Sports said on Monday that he has filed an interlocutory appeal against the ruling of the Fast Track High Court that overruled his submission of no case against his client.
Mr Ambrose Dery said he has also filed a motion for stay of proceedings.
He told the court that he took the action because he was not happy with its ruling on his submission of no case against his client. Mallam Isa is charged with stealing 46,000 dollars and fraudulently causing financial loss to the state. The money was meant as winning bonus for the Black Stars and imprest for officials during a World Cup qualifying match in Sudan last February.
Mallam Isa has denied the charges and has been admitted to a 500 million-cedi bail with a surety to be justified.
As part of the bail conditions, the court ordered the accused person to deposit the title deed of a landed property with the registry of the court and report to the head of the CID on every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Mr Dery last week submitted to the court that the prosecution had failed to adduce any evidence against his client.
However, the court presided over by Mr Justice Julius Ansah, an Appeal Court Judge sitting with additional responsibility as a High Court Judge, dismissed the submission saying after studying the charge sheet and the facts presented by the prosecution, a prima facie case had been established against the accused person and, therefore, ordered him to open his defence.
Mr Dery told the court that his grounds for the appeal are that its ruling is not supported by the evidence on record and that the trial judge erred in law in ruling that the republic established a prima facie case for which the accused person was called upon to open his defence, when elements of offences charged were not proved prima facie.
Mr Dery said: "the trial judge erred in law when he ruled that section 179A (3) (a) of the Criminal Code, 1960 Act 29 is constitutional and does not offend Article 19 (11) of the 1992 constitution of the Republic of Ghana, even though it does not define what action or omission constitutes the offence under the said section."
Counsel said: "the trial judge erred when he ruled that fraudulent per se is adequate to ground a criminal offence without a definition."
In an affidavit in support of a motion to stay proceedings, pending the determination of interlocutory appeal against the ruling, defence counsel stated that on May 23 he made a submission that no case had been made against the accused person on the two counts sufficiently for him to answer.
Mr Dery said on May 24, Mr Justice Ansah dismissed a submission of no case and ordered that: "I open my defence in a ruling dated May 24".
Counsel said the appeals raise substantial issues of law to be determined by the Court of Appeal. They also raise issues and/or questions affecting his client's fundamental human rights for a fair trial and his right to personal liberty.
Mr Dery said his appeals have a great chance of success. Hearing continues on Tuesday.
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