Tsatsu's lawyer asks for postponement

Counsel for Tsatsu Tsikata has asked for a postponement of the hearing of the case in which his client is challenging the Practice Directive given by His Lordship, the Chief Justice, E.K. Wiredu.

In a letter faxed from South Africa, where he is attending a human right summit, Professor Victor Oware Dankwa drew the attention of the Supreme Court Registrar to the provisions of Rule 2 (3) of the Supreme Court Rules, 1996, C.I 1 which requires that ?the registrar shall during each term publish, within the precincts of the court and of the High Court of Justice in each region, at least fourteen days before hearing, short lists which shall show the criminal and civil appeals or matters which are to be heard by the court.?

In the letter copied to His Lordship the Justice and the Attorney-General Professor Dankwa requesting for the postponement to enable him represent his client at the hearing of the case.

Professor Dankwa?s letter said: ?I am counsel for the plaintiff in the above titled case. I have just learnt that the list just published of Supreme Court cases for 14th May, 2002 has the above titled case listed for hearing on that day.?

According to Professor Dankwa, he is currently in South Africa attending a meeting of the African Commission on Human People?s Rights of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) which is due to end on Thursday, May 16. It is on the basis of this that Professor Dankwa asked for the postponement, ?The Independent,? a private newspaper reports on its front page.

?When the Independent reached the Judicial Secretary, Mr. George Aryeetey last Friday as to the implication of this request, he disclosed that the case would still be called since it had been listed and fixed for that date.

He said however that it is too early for counsel for Tsatsu Tsikata to have raised that point. He could have asked someone to ask for the postponement on his behalf on the 14th.?

As things stand now, it is within the discretion of the Supreme Court to decide whether to postpone the case as requested, the Judicial Secretary said but reiterated that tomorrow?s sitting will come on.

Tsikata?s lawyer filed a writ last month seeking an interpretation as to whether the Practice Directive issued by the Chief Justice on empanelling 11 justices of the Supreme Court is constitutional.

Already, the A-G who is second defendant in the case has deposited his statement of case with the Supreme Court as required on April 24, in response to Tsatsu?s writ.

The 32-point statement of case responds to all the issues raised by Mr. Tsikata in his writ that seeks to challenge the Practice Directive for the Supreme Court