Dr. Apaak accuses gov’t of manipulating the judiciary over Gregory Afoko’s bail brouhaha

The Member of Parliament for Builsa South, Dr. Clement Apaak, is suggesting there has been some form of manipulation of the judicial system by the executive following the decision by an Accra High Court to rescind its own decision in granting Gregory Afoko bail.

The MP who had earlier chastised government over failure to allow the suspect to enjoy his bail and also slammed the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), over their silence on the matter has issued a statement accusing the executive of manipulating the judicial.

The legislator in his latest statement indicated that “Folks, if you had any doubts about the manipulation of other arms of government and the disregard for the basic tenets of a nation governed by the rule of law, the decision by a Court to rescind an earlier Court decision granting bail to Gregory Afoko 4 months ago should clear that.”

He said: “Afoko was denied bail for 4 months as granted by a Court 4 months ago. How come someone was grated bail 4 months ago yet state institutions deny him his right to bail, yet the state gets that bail rescinded by whisking him to court right from his hospital bed at an odd hour to obtain a judgment rescinding the earlier bail granted him by a Court.”

In his view, citizens are in danger should they fail to rise up against the unfortunate incident, the lawlessness and impunity as well as the manipulation of Ghana’s Judicial system.

“We are in real danger as citizens! It’s not about Afoko, it’s about the laws of the land, its the constitutional rights of every citizen, it’s about the rule of law, it’s about the separation of powers and it’s about the risk of having an executive influencing and interfering in the work of other arms of government! Arise!”

The Accra High Court on Monday rescinded the bail granted to Gregory Afoko, one of the men alleged to have conspired to kill the Upper East Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Alhaji Adams Mahama.

Another High Court on March 14, 2019, admitted Afoko to bail in the sum of Gh?500,000 with two sureties, one of whom must be justified.

That was after his lawyers had argued that their client deserved to be granted bail because the state was not ready to prosecute him.

The court was presided over by Justice George Buadi

Lawyers for the suspect based their argument on a nolle prosequi filed by the Attorney-General on January 28, 2019, to discontinue Afoko’s trial after more than three years of trial.

The A-G filed the nolle prosequi after the arrest of Asabke Alangdi, the other person alleged to have conspired with Afoko to allegedly commit the murder.

However, at a hearing on Monday, another High Court, presided over by Justice Merley Afua Wood, a Justice of the Court of Appeal sitting as an additional High Court judge, rescinded the bail granted to Afoko.

Justice Wood’s court is the court where a fresh trial of Afoko and another Alangdi has commenced.

The court rescinded the bail after upholding the arguments by the prosecutor, Ms. Marina Appiah Oppong, a Chief State State Attorney.

Ms. Oppong argued that the circumstances under which Afoko was granted bail had changed.

According to her, the other High Court granted Afoko bail on the basis that the state was not certain as to when to start prosecution.

It was her argument that the state has completed the committal proceedings and commenced trial quickly after the nolle prosequi was filed.