State given seven days to file affidavit in Bawku MP’s case

Accra, July 18, GNA – The Court of Appeal (CA) on Monday gave the State seven days to file its affidavit in opposition to a motion of stay of proceedings filed by Adamu Dramani Sakande, Member of Parliament (MP) for Bawku Central.

This was after it had dismissed a preliminary objection raised by Mr Anthony Rexford Wiredu, Principal State Attorney, with regard to the motion.

Mr Wiredu argued that the MP ought to have gone to the High Court with the motion and not the CA under the CI 19, Section 28.

He informed the court that he had not been served with the court processes because he was out of the jurisdiction for an official assignment.

According to him, he saw the matter on the court’s lists and he found it prudent to appear before the Court.

Mr Yonni Kulendi, who represented the MP, prayed the court to overrule the State’s argument and protect the sanctity of the court process.

The CA drew the attention of the Principal State Attorney to CI 19 section 27 indicating that the High Court could not stay its proceedings but could only do that through the orders of the CA.

The CA explained further that it was only in the case of stay of execution that the High Court could do so.

The CA, however, did not fix any date for the hearing of the matter.

On June 8, the High Court ruled that the recall of witnesses, although was discretionary, should clear ambiguity, establish truth and authenticate a version, which was unforeseen in a matter.

According to Mr Kulendi, the ruling should not have bordered on the recall of witnesses by the court, rather on the improper manner that the prosecution requested his client to identify documents, which bordered on the renunciation of his British citizenship and which were purported to have emanated from the National Security Secretariat (NSS) and other agencies.

On July 31, 2009, the MP was arraigned and charged with nine counts relating to his nationality, perjury, forgery of passport, election fraud and deceiving public officers to be elected as an MP.

He was, however, exonerated on six of those charges on July 8, 2010.

He is currently facing three charges of false declaration of office, perjury and deceiving a public officer.