Comment: Good news from Ghana!

Good news from and about Ghana is as rare as pure unadulterated affection from these days.

Even as the Cedi is being used as an alleged “yo-yo” plaything, by “dwarfs” in the dark forests (if some unofficial spokespersons of the NDC Government are to be believed!)

The search for that fleet-footed and fast-winged currency has become so pervasive that when a broad smile comes across the face of anybody with whom one is having a conversation, one instinctively wonders whether a fast sakawa or 419 is not being secretly hatched at one's potential expense.

“I couldn't call you because my phone is misbehaving”, one is told. Or “my phone was snatched at a lorry station!” And immediately one wonders; am I being set up to buy a new phone for this person?

And this in a country that was once reputed to be inhabited by one of the “friendliest” people in the world? Yes, we have lost something of great value; our ability to demonstrate true, disinterested, altruism. Economic reality has, alas, done for much of our spontaneity of behaviour. We suspect others of being calculating. And probably they suspect us of the same.

I am pleased to report therefore, that something happened this weekend which restored my faith in Ghana a wee bit. Someone I know was leaving London for Accra, and afraid that he might be carrying more weight in luggage terms than the allowed limit, he kept one of his bags unlocked, with the intention of jettisoning some of the stuff in it in case he was adjudged to be over the limit. He took along a strong padlock, for the purpose of locking the bag, after its fate had become known.

Fortunately for him, the luggage was of the correct weight. And he was congratulating himself on being able to pack so accurately when the check-in clerk pressed the button and the bag was sent on its way down the conveyor belt towards the aircraft's luggage hold!

He of course, alerted the attendant to the fact that the bag was not padlocked! But the attendant was insistent that its contents would be “safe.” He on the other hand, said to the attendant, if he insisted and they recalled the bag, it would “take one and a half hours!” which meant he might miss the flight! There was nothing for it but to let the matter rest. My friend suffered immense agony imagining what could happened to his purchases if the bag was opened and “inspected” by “unauthorised personnel” at Accra airport! Even locked luggage has been known to be tampered with. How much more an unlocked bag that clearly invited unscrupulous airport porters to dip in and take what they wanted?

But guess what – when my friend got to Accra, the unlocked bag was the first of his lot to pop out from that dark chute on to the conveyor belt, and thence, into his anxious hands. The bag had been completely unmolested! My friend was relieved. I was relieved when he phoned to tell me of his relief, for I had been very anxious on his behalf. And I say, “Well done!” and “Thank you!” to the honest airport porters of Kotoka International Airport. That is how to win respect for our country.

On mobile phones – the stealing of which appears to be a very common occurrence these days – I was outraged, despite knowing about this increasing social nuisance, when I read that a circuit judge in Kumasi had sentenced someone to forty-five years imprisonment for stealing the mobile phone of another person. The story read: QUOTE ‘An ex-convict, Baffour Awuah has been sent back to prison by a Kumasi Circuit Court to serve a 45-year jail term in (sic) hard labour for robbery’.

This was after he had pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy and robbery.

Awuah, alias “School-boy”, 20, together with one other person, whose name was only given as Bontele, now on the run, had attacked and robbed their victim of his mobile phone and cash of GH¢70.00. Police Inspector, Gulliver Tenkorang told the court, presided over by Mr. William Boampong that this happened on April 18.

He said the victim, Adamu Musah, is an employee of the Produce Buying Company (PBC) at Tarkwa, and had arrived in Kumasi en-route to Ejura to visit his sick mother.

Musah decided to buy food at the Asafo Neoplan Station when the convict and his fugitive colleague approached and demanded that he gave them GH¢1.00 to buy cannabis, which he refused. The prosecutor said this angered the two, who drew a knife, attacked the victim, and forcibly removed his phone and cash and attempted to flee. He said the victim, (Musah) gave them a chase (sic) and as luck would have it, a police patrol team chanced upon the incident and managed to arrest Awuah, while Bontele escaped.

The phone was retrieved during a search on Awuah. He admitted the crime in his caution statement and said the stolen cash was with Bontele, the prosecution added. UNQUOUTE

On reading this report, my reaction was that perhaps the circuit judge had exceeded his powers. Forty-five years for robbery? That was worth two life sentences for murder, in some countries, where remission of sentences means that life sentences are often not more than 20 years, unless the judge specifically recommends that in a particular case, life meant life, or an X number of years.

Anyway, I was puzzled enough to send an email to one of the most brilliant lawyers I know at the Ghana Bar, the aptly-named Ace Ankomah, to ascertain his take on the situation. My email queried:

1. What is the maximum sentence that could lawfully be imposed for this offence?



2. Is the circuit judge empowered to impose a sentence exceeding the one prescribed by law?



3. What can be done about the sentence, in the event that the convicted person, in all likelihood, cannot appeal because of lack of means?



4. What do you think is the likely effect of such sentences on the public's attitude towards the system of justice in Ghana, seeing that so many thefts of state funds either go unpunished, or are dealt with in a relatively lenient manner?

ACE'S REPLY:

“I will provide just ONE answer to all of your questions: “The judge is right. In the hype and the misleading headline by the journalist, many have missed a critical aspect of the story. Baffuor Awuah was not convicted of stealing. He was convicted of and sentenced for ROBBERY.

“The prosecutor said that [refusal to comply with the request for money] angered the two, who drew a knife, attacked the victim, and forcibly removed his phone and cash...”

“Robbery, under Section 149 of the Criminal Offences Act, is a FIRST DEGREE FELONY. Under Section 150, the offence of robbery is committed if in, and for the purpose of, stealing, a person uses force or causes harm, or uses even threats or assault, with the intention of preventing or overcoming the resistance of the other person.

“Under Section 196 of the Criminal & Other Offences (Procedure) Act, unless a statute prescribes a specific punishment, a person convicted of a first degree felony is liable to life imprisonment or “any lesser term.”

“And so this guy could have been sentenced to life imprisonment. He is lucky to get away with a “lesser term” of 45 years. Note: It is not about the value of the item that he ended up stealing, but the fact that he committed a robbery (used force or the threat of force or an assault, when he drew the knife and attacked the victim). THAT is what has sent him to jail for 45 years.

“On the facts, there is precious little, to no, difference between this guy and the guy who robs you at night in your house and only gets a mobile phone.”

Well, thanks, Ace Ankomah. You have made the law as clear as daylight. I plead with our news editors and reporters to seek to understand the law a bit more before they report on sensational cases, as a misunderstanding of what the law actually provides can mislead the public into misjudging our judicial officers. Quite clearly, a judge is obliged to apply the law under which a person is charged. If stealing is seen by the law to be a lesser crime than robbery with violence, there is pretty little a judge can do about that. If the public thinks the distinction between the two offences is too stark, it is Parliament that should be prevailed upon to amend the law, not judges who should be blamed for applying it.

Of course, for those who would brandish a gun or a knife in the course of a robbery or attempted robbery, the message is clear: right now, you can be imprisoned, if caught, and the key to your cell virtually thrown away – even if you were only after a mobile phone costing a few hundred cedis. So, then – JUST DON'T DO IT!

By Cameron Duodu www.cameronduodu.com