Cecilia Dapaah's lawyers accuse OSP of disrespecting court over CJ petition

Lawyers representing Cecilia Dapaah have accused the Office of the Special Prosecutor of showing disrespect to the court in their handling of a petition to have Justice Edward Twum removed from the case, Citinewsroom.com reports.

On Thursday, lawyers from the Office of the Special Prosecutor were notably absent in court despite being scheduled to move an application for the confirmation of seizure and freezing orders.

They were also expected to initiate proceedings regarding the charge of refusal to declare assets against Cecilia Dapaah.

As a result of their absence, the presiding judge was forced to adjourn the hearing to a later date, awaiting the response to their request to have Justice Edward Twum removed from the case.

Cecilia Dapaah's legal team expressed disappointment at the lack of notification from the Office of the Special Prosecutor regarding the petition.

Victoria Barth, one of Dapaah's lawyers, characterized the petition as "a deliberate ploy to frustrate this morning’s hearing (Confirmation application) and a desperate attempt to avoid his (Kissi Agyabeng) own ill-fitted application."

Furthermore, the court was unable to proceed with the case in which the former sanitation minister is charged with refusing to declare her assets.

This was attributed to the failure of the Special Prosecutor's office lawyers to attend court proceedings due to the petition requesting the Judge's removal from their cases.

Cecilia Dapaah's legal representatives also raised concerns about the decision of the Special Prosecutor's office lawyers to absent themselves from the proceedings.

Victoria Barth emphasized in court that no law or procedure excuses the absence of a lawyer or prosecutor merely because they have petitioned the Chief Justice regarding a matter of which they were duly informed and initiated.

She firmly stated in court that the Office of the Special Prosecutor had not demonstrated respect and fairness to the court.

"As lawyers, we have an ethical duty to show respect to the court and to treat all persons we engage in the administration of justice fairly, and that has not happened today. The OSP is not above the law," Victoria Barth expressed in court.

Meanwhile, the Office of the Special Prosecutor, on a social media platform, clarified that the petition's purpose was to seek the removal of Justice Edward Twum from all pending cases involving the Office of the Special Prosecutor.

They argued that Justice Edward Twum exhibited prejudice against the Office and the Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyabeng.

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