Poor Interpretation Forces Court To Adjourn

Accra, (Greater Accra) 29 Oct. A High Court in Accra trying five persons charged with treason adjourned to tomorrow due to the poor performance of a court interpreter. The presiding judge of the three-member panel, Mr Justice P.K. Owusu-Sekyere, adjourned the trial after continuous poor interpretation of evidence of the first prosecution witness, Lance Corporal Emmanuel Amoah. The interpreter could not translate Lance Corporal Amoah's evidence from Twi into English as well as questions from Mr J.C. Amonoo-Monney, Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). Mr Justice Owusu-Sekyere apologised to the defence as well as members of the public for the poor performance of the interpreter, the third to be called in the trial which entered its second day today. When the case started yesterday, the first two interpreters did not perform well and their services were dispensed with and a third interpreter sworn in. The presiding judge said he wondered why the three interpreters had performed poorly because they were the same people who normally interprete at the High Courts. Mr Justice Owusu-Sekyere assured the defence, the prosecution as well as the public that there would be better interpretation of proceedings at the next sitting. Mr Nyamekye Baah, counsel for the first accused, Alex Offei, was first to raise an objection to the poor interpretation of the evidence of L/cpl. Amoah. He urged the court to ensure that it obtained an efficient interpreter. Mr Baah on behalf of the other defence counsel, stressed the relevance of an accurate interpretation since the offence is a first degree felony. The bench, which had to caution the interpreters, agreed and adjourned the case. Mr Amonoo-Monney agreed to the sentiments expressed by the court and the defence.