SP, Cecilia Dapaah & husband appear in Court for first time, case adjourned to January 25

Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng has made his second appearance in Court within a space of three days in the case in which the Office of Special Prosecutor is seeking Confirmation Orders for seizure and freezing of former Sanitation minister Cecilia Abena Dapaah.

This marks the first time the SP, Cecilia Dapaah, and husband Daniel Osei Kuffuor made their first appearance in Court ever since Cecilia Dapaah's saga started in July 2023.

On December 22, last year when the case was called, the Court presided over by Justice Nana Brew granted the OSP one last opportunity to put its house in order.

In Court on Thursday, January 11, 2024, when the parties appeared with the SP making his second appearance, in three days, the case was held in Chambers.

Apart from the application seeking a Confirmation order of Seizure and Freeze, the Criminal leg of the case against Cecilia Dapaah for failing to declare his assets was also dealt with.

The case has since been adjourned to January 25, 2024.

According to EIB Network’s Legal Affairs Correspondent, Murtala Inusah, this is the first time Cecilia Dapaah, the husband, and Kissi Agyabeng were present in Court.

Undisclosed developments

At the last Court sitting on Friday, December 22, when it was confirmed by the Court that, the case docket was assigned to the relieving Justice Nana Brew of the Financial & Economic Division of the Accra High Court, the OSP’s Prosecutors sought an adjournment.

Esther Fafa Tetteh, representing the OSP told the Court that, her instruction was for the case to be adjourned “due to certain developments” which when resolved could affect the outcome of the case before the Court.

She said that adjourning would help the OSP to determine the pending applications.

Chronicle of events

Lead Counsel for Cecilia Dapaah, Lawyer Victoria Barth while opposing the request, recounted how the OSP (Applicant) had frustrated the process including a “dead-on-arrival Certiorari application at the Supreme Court.

While giving a chronicle of the events on the case so far, Counsel submitted that the Applicant’s (Special Prosecutor) motion for confirmation of his orders of freezing and seizure of suspected tainted property was filed as far back as September 11.

She added that the Application had a return date of October 18, a good five weeks from the date of filing.

Counsel submitted again that, thereafter, the Applicant (OSP) filed an application (Certiorari) before the Supreme Court to quash a ruling of the Court that was abridging the hearing of their application for confirmation orders.

Lawyer Barth said on the back of the application to the Apex Court, they filed a motion to Stay Proceedings in the High Court, however, “it was eventually heard on November 29, 2023, only for the Applicant to withdraw it having taken a cue from the bench that the application was ‘dead-on-arrival’.”