Pursue full compensation over your ‘unfairly’ seized equipment - Supreme Court ‘advises’ Exton Cubic

The Supreme Court yesterday determined the application for judicial review brought by Exton cubic against the decision of the human rights court in Kumasi presided over by his Lordship Justice Akrofi, by directing Exton cubic to pursue the appeal it has filed against the decision of the High court over the unfair seizure of its expensive, heavy-duty mining equipment.

Yesterday’s ruling by the Supreme Court, however, has nothing to do with the substantive matter of the concession and mining leases held by Exton Cubic.

It will be recalled that a High Court in Accra in 2018 affirmed Exton Cubic lease and declared the government revocation of Exton cubic’s lease as wrong and illegal and accordingly quashed the decision of the lands and natural resources minister to revoke the mining leases of Exton Cubic.

Exton cubic last year filed a suit against the Attorney-General in the Kumasi High Court for the wrongful detention and seizure of its equipment at Nyinahini in the Ashanti region after they won the substantive case of their mining leases at High Court in Accra on February 8, 2018.

Following that ruling in Accra on February 8, which went in favour of Exton Cubic, they proceeded to the High Court in Kumasi. But the High court in Kumasi dismissed its case for compensation in June last year. Exton cubic has subsequently filed an appeal in Court of Appeal against that decision.

In the application for judicial review, Exton Cubic argued that the High Court in Kumasi had no power to make some constitutional declarations in its ruling which was given in June 2018.

Exton Cubic pleaded with the Supreme Court to quash the High court’s decision. However, the Supreme Court after inquiring in open court from the lawyers of Exton cubic whether they have filed an appeal against the decision directed that Exton cubic pursues the appeal.

After the honest concession by counsel for Exton cubic that there was an appeal pending, the Supreme Court dismissed the case brought by Exton cubic and directed them to pursue the appeal and that when the appeal gets to the supreme court they will look at the facts and make a determination accordingly.

Lawyers of Exton cubic have indicated that are waiting on the appeal process to be completed so that the appeal can be heard for the compensation of the seizure and subsequent release of the equipment at the Appeals Court.