\u201cGod forbid! God forbid! I am not rich, I do not have money but I don\u2019t go begging for food. I work as counsel\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
This was Lawyer Alex Afenyo-Markin\u2019s response to allegations of receiving dubious payments from the management of Agricultural Development Bank (adb) to withdraw a Supreme Court case against the bank\u2019s Initial Public Offer (IPO).<\/p>\n
Reports on Monday suggested that the New Juaben South Member of Parliament (MP), Dr. Mark Assibey-Yeboah who had dragged the adb to court over the bank\u2019s IPO launch had withdrawn the case from the Supreme Court<\/strong> <\/span><\/a>after receiving hefty amounts from the bank.<\/p>\n [contextly_sidebar id=”PGKX26YvoAaW44zHwYP1W2crOUPhoDhk”]But responding to these allegations on Eyewitness News<\/strong>, Assibey-Yeboah\u2019s lawyer, Afenyo-Markin, vehemently denied the claims.<\/p>\n According to him, he and his client have also heard the rumor that they have been paid off but urged the general public to treat them as mere allegations.<\/p>\n \u201cI have also heard this rumour; we were hearing it all over and we realized that somebody was out there peddling falsehood. It\u2019s even being said that some MPs were given protocol employment and all that. I am saying that as for allegations, you will hear them. We are political players and you will hear some of these things,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He disclosed that the old writ was withdrawn because some amendments had to be made to it but he was quick to add that a new writ was subsequently filed on Tuesday.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cQuite surprisingly, the mistake we initially made which resulted in withdrawing for a new writ to be issued. As at this afternoon when we filed our statement of case and the new writ, the UNICOF had also directed another counsel to file\u2026 As we speak, the matter is pending.\u201d<\/p>\n Eyewitness News<\/strong> host, Richard Sky quoted the Supreme Court rule 49 CI 16 which states that \u201cA writ or statement of the plaintiffs or of the defendant\u2019s case may be amended at any time with the leave of the court on the terms that the court may determine\u201d<\/p>\n This suggests that they could have proceeded with the case without the writ being withdrawn but Afenyo-Markin said this is not necessarily the case.<\/p>\n He explained that \u201cwhen at the preliminary stage, the matter is not ripe for hearing and you as Counsel, you notice that you have made some fundamental errors which affects your whole matter, it is proper, it is a matter of choice and it is proper at that stage because instead of it to travel its full length at hearing which will be about 28 days or so after filing.\u201d<\/p>\n He vouched for his client saying, he will under no circumstance accept a bribe offer to withdraw such an important case.<\/p>\n \u201cIf somebody is cutting a deal, then you don\u2019t proceed with an action\u2026 Do you know Dr. Mark Assibey Yeboah very well? Mark Assibey Yeboah will go and take money from who? And if adb is paying money to silence people, and let\u2019s say what you are saying is true that if Assibey Yeboah takes the money, what is the guarantee that another person will not also go to court?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n By: Efua Idan Osam\/citifmonline.com\/Ghana
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