Attorney General Archives - Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always https://citifmonline.com/tag/attorney-general/ Ghana News | Ghana Politics | Ghana Soccer | Ghana Showbiz Tue, 27 Feb 2018 13:39:47 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.0.8 https://citifmonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/cropped-CITI-973-FM-32x32.jpg Attorney General Archives - Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always https://citifmonline.com/tag/attorney-general/ 32 32 With Amidu; I may not need prosecutorial powers – Auditor General https://citifmonline.com/2018/02/with-amidu-i-may-not-need-prosecutorial-powers-auditor-general/ Tue, 27 Feb 2018 07:00:44 +0000 http://citifmonline.com/?p=404728 The Auditor General, Daniel Domelevo, says his desire for prosecutorial powers from the Attorney General has abated a little following the appointment of Martin Amidu as Special Prosecutor. According to him, under section three of the Special Prosecutor’s Act, the Office can investigate alleged corruption and corruption-related offences, which are submitted to Parliament and the […]

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The Auditor General, Daniel Domelevo, says his desire for prosecutorial powers from the Attorney General has abated a little following the appointment of Martin Amidu as Special Prosecutor.

According to him, under section three of the Special Prosecutor’s Act, the Office can investigate alleged corruption and corruption-related offences, which are submitted to Parliament and the Attorney General by the Audit Service.

[contextly_sidebar id=”mfKcP9S3m2AO7YgjSsOfwFXR4Obr9rNA”]He added that given the extensive mandate of the Special Prosecutor, it is imperative that they allow the new Office to commence its work fully in order to assess its capacity.

Mr. Domelevo had earlier placed a request to the Attorney General for prosecutorial powers to enable his outfit deal with persons and institutions indicted in the annual audit reports.

However speaking on Point Blank Eyewitness News on Monday, Mr. Domelevo said: “Even that position I’ve relaxed it a bit because of the coming into office of the Special Prosecutor. I want the Special Prosecutor to also take off and let us see. For all you know, he may have enough capacity to cover the cases. Section 3 of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act actually requires that he takes some of our recommendations and prosecute so that link has been established by law. It’s good we wait a bit and see how the Special Prosecutor’s Office is going to be. If they have enough stomach and energy to drive all that, they can go ahead with prosecution.”

‘Helping hand’

News of the request from the Auditor General for the prosecutorial powers was met with widespread commendation from Civil Society and the general Ghanaian public.

Many people praised Mr. Domelevo for his desire to ensure that persons who misappropriate state funds are made to face the law.

However, after some suggestions that his request was an indictment on the Office of the Attorney General for their failure to prosecute persons cited in the audit reports, Mr. Domelevo chastised the media for exaggerating his call.

He reiterated his assertion that he wasn’t in dire need of prosecutorial powers on Eyewitness News, adding that he was merely “offering a helping hand” to the AG.

“What we want to do is to hold people accountable. To be honest, prosecution is not my responsibility. My predecessor actually applied for [prosecutorial powers]. People think I want to use my auditors to go and prosecute I have a legal department which is staffed by professional legal practitioners. When they brought it to my attention, I thought that to get them occupied and with the AG saying she has 300 instead of the 600 [lawyers] that she may need to run her office, I thought that why not ask the AG that if it pleases her, we can help in prosecution,” he said.

“But that is not something I am in dying need of. My job is to audit and I have the mandate to audit. I am only extending a helping hand to the AG. If it pleases her and she says I should come on board, then I’ll go.”

Mr. Domelevo stated that although the AG had acknowledged receipt of his request, they have not responded to it because “at the time they said they didn’t have a Board or Council which has to considerate. I hope they have it now.”

Amidu sworn in

Mr. Amidu was sworn in on Friday, February 23, 2018 at the Flagstaff House by President Akufo-Addo in the presence of the Vice President, Mahamudu Bawumia; Chief of Staff Frema Opare; Attorney General, Gloria Akuffo and other government officials.

The former Attorney General received unanimous approval from Parliament, and was widely acclaimed by the Ghanaian public for his performance at his vetting.

By: Edwin Kwakofi/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Gov’t to employ additional 50 State Attorneys https://citifmonline.com/2018/02/govt-to-employ-additional-50-state-attorneys/ Fri, 16 Feb 2018 11:17:50 +0000 http://citifmonline.com/?p=401801 The Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Mrs. Gloria Akuffo, has hinted that government has secured financial clearance from the Ministry of Finance for the  employment Fifty (50) State Attorneys to augment and strengthen the delivery of justice in the country. Gloria Akuffo disclosed this at Bolgatanga during a familiarization tour of the Upper East […]

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The Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Mrs. Gloria Akuffo, has hinted that government has secured financial clearance from the Ministry of Finance for the  employment Fifty (50) State Attorneys to augment and strengthen the delivery of justice in the country.

Gloria Akuffo disclosed this at Bolgatanga during a familiarization tour of the Upper East Region on Thursday.

The tour to was to enable her have first hand information about the challenges confronting state attorneys in the discharge of their duties in the region.

[contextly_sidebar id=”wtLHIux0NXxSitIltn1dvfoEDV0v9YYi”]She recounted numerous problems confronting state attorneys in their line of duty saying government was committed to resourcing them work effectively and efficiently.

“We have problems with staffing, vehicles, office equipment and accommodation confronting the justice delivery system. I have tried to explain that there have been some neglect, but as of now there are constraints with money and by the time government finishes servicing the loans and meeting statutory obligations, we would have much left to share but whatever little we get we will try to use it in such a manner that all my offices will get something to work with.”

“In respect of staffing, we have be given approval to recruit about Fifty (50) Attorneys, they are going through the recruitment process, and once the process is completed we will send some lawyers to the Upper East Region. In the meantime, I have asked the National Service Secretariat (NSS) to post to my office all lawyers who are newly enrolled and will not have performed their National service yet so we can use them to support Attorneys in the regions,” Miss Akuffo stated.

Miss Akuffo also indicated that, government would soon procure some vehicles for state attorneys to facilitate their operations.

State attorneys ditching gov’t for better paying jobs

There were reports in 2016 which suggested that State Attorneys were abandoning the judicial service for better paying jobs.

According to the Director of Public Prosecution at the time, Yvonne Attakora Obuobisa, the trend hampered the delivery of justice across the country.

She noted that as at 2016, Accra had only 36 prosecuting attorneys, noting that the situation was “worse in the regional offices.”

She said a region as big as the Brong Ahafo Region could boast of only two prosecuting attorneys, “two in the Central Region, two in the Upper West Region, three in the Northern Region, three in Volta Region, and six in the Eastern Region.”

“We have low numbers and we are actually overwhelmed. There are so many cases that we have to advise on. It all has to do with a number of factors. For some time now we’ve had high attrition rate, people come and leave because it is always better to work in private practice,” she lamented.

By: Frederick Awuni/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Give me power to prosecute – Auditor-General to AG https://citifmonline.com/2018/02/give-me-power-to-prosecute-auditor-general-to-ag/ Mon, 05 Feb 2018 15:44:28 +0000 http://citifmonline.com/?p=398699 The Auditor-General, Daniel Yaw Domelevo, says he has applied to the Attorney General to grant him powers to prosecute persons indicted in the Auditor General’s report. Addressing journalists on Monday, February 5, 2018, Mr. Domelevo said “…if a fiat is given by the Attorney General to Audit Service just like it has been given to the […]

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The Auditor-General, Daniel Yaw Domelevo, says he has applied to the Attorney General to grant him powers to prosecute persons indicted in the Auditor General’s report.

Addressing journalists on Monday, February 5, 2018, Mr. Domelevo said “…if a fiat is given by the Attorney General to Audit Service just like it has been given to the police and others to prosecute…which I have actually applied for, you will see me in action.”

[contextly_sidebar id=”IX3XpmrUqx6k5h7UkaFEk5MYgzncNLpF”]Domelevo made the announcement on the back of revelations from a 2016 audit of the finances of the various ministries, departments and agencies, which revealed that some state agencies engaged in unlawful monetary practices.

The Auditor General had earlier disclosed that, some GHc5.4 billion was wrongfully paid to contractors, and other service providers by officials at the various ministries between 2014-2017.

Domelevo said he has disallowed such payments, and has recommended prosecution of the officials who presided over same.

Surcharge officials  

The Supreme Court in June 2017 ordered the Auditor General to, with immediate effect; begin surcharging persons found to have misappropriated monies belonging to the state.

The order was secured after a suit filed by pressure group, Occupy Ghana in June 2016.

62 firms surcharged by Auditor General to cough up nearly Ghc9m

The Auditor General subsequently in December 2017, announced that it has surcharged 62 organisations for receiving payments from the state without any documentation as proof.

The surcharge certificates totaling GHc8,886,791.9101742 according to the Auditor General, was for the period between December 31, 2013 and December 31, 2015.

The companies, mostly private organisations, also included some state institutions and staff of some government agencies.

In a release by the Auditor General’s office, it said that efforts to track down the listed companies had been fruitless forcing them to publish their names.

By: citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Re-lay Law School admissions L.I. – AG advises Parliament https://citifmonline.com/2018/02/re-lay-law-school-admissions-l-i-ag-advises-parliament/ Fri, 02 Feb 2018 17:47:41 +0000 http://citifmonline.com/?p=397741 The Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Gloria Afua Akuffo has advised Parliament to withdraw the controversial Legal Profession Regulations and take steps to re-lay it in the House. This, according to the Attorney General, is because some processes governing such regulations were not adhered to, adding that the regulation was not gazetted on time, […]

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The Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Gloria Afua Akuffo has advised Parliament to withdraw the controversial Legal Profession Regulations and take steps to re-lay it in the House.

This, according to the Attorney General, is because some processes governing such regulations were not adhered to, adding that the regulation was not gazetted on time, hence the advice.

[contextly_sidebar id=”vVkTEeUQJluw7blCODxoLUcjnVEBrzuM”]“Your directive to the Ghana Publishing Company Limited to gazette the Regulation after the 22nd of December, 2017 does not meet the requirement of article 11(7) (b) of the 1992 Constitution. I kindly advise that the necessary arrangements are made to ensure that the Legal Profession (Professional and Post-Call Law Course) Regulation, 2017 are re-laid before Parliament in compliance with article 11 (7) of the 1992 constitution,” a letter the Attorney General wrote to the Parliamentary Committee on Subsidiary Legislation and sighted by citifmonline.com stated.

Withdraw it now – Muntaka

Minority Chief Whip, Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, had on Thursday, prayed Parliament to withdraw the Legal Profession Regulations currently before Parliament.

According to him, the legislation, which has been in Parliament for over a month now, has not even been seen by some of the Members of Parliament as they have not received any copies.

Muntaka also alleged that, information available to him suggests the regulation has not been gazetted.

The Attorney General in the letter reminded Parliament of what article 11 (7) of the 1992 Constitution states pertaining to the laying of bills as captured below:

Any Order, Rule or Regulation made by a person or authority under a power conferred by this Constitution or any other law shall

(a) be laid before Parliament;

(b) be published in the Gazette on the day it is laid before Parliament; and

(c) come into force at the expiration of twenty-one sitting days after being so laid unless Parliament, before the expiration of the twenty-one days annuls the Order, Rule or Regulation by the votes of note less than two-thirds of all the members of Parliament.

Annul regulation now

Prior to that, a group calling itself, the Association of Law students had called on Parliament to annul the regulation.

The Association of Law Students on January 29, 2018, petitioned President Nana Akufo-Addo to cause the withdrawal of the controversial Legal Profession Regulations 2017 from Parliament.

The Association wants the President to impress on Members of Parliament to vote against the regulation.

The General Legal Council laid the Regulations in Parliament on December 22, 2017, in response to a Supreme Court order for a clear admission procedure into the Ghana School of Law, and call to the Ghana Bar.

The proposed L.I. in question, among other things, states that the General Legal Council will conduct an entrance exam for the admission of students to the school, and conduct interviews for all applicants who pass the Ghana School of Law Entrance Examination.

The LI is expected to become Law this month, February, 2018.

But the law students maintain that if the document is passed in its current form, it will restrict access to legal education.

By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Occupy Ghana petitions AG over blacklisted names by Births and Deaths https://citifmonline.com/2018/01/occupy-ghana-petitions-ag-over-blacklisted-names-by-births-and-deaths/ Fri, 26 Jan 2018 07:26:16 +0000 http://citifmonline.com/?p=395344 Pressure Group, Occupy Ghana, has written to the Attorney General, Gloria Akuffo, to complain about the blacklisting of certain names such as Nana, Nii, Junior, among others from being registered by the Births & Deaths Registry. Occupy Ghana in the letter argued that, the Registry’s action has no basis in law, and charged the Attorney General […]

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Pressure Group, Occupy Ghana, has written to the Attorney General, Gloria Akuffo, to complain about the blacklisting of certain names such as Nana, Nii, Junior, among others from being registered by the Births & Deaths Registry.

Occupy Ghana in the letter argued that, the Registry’s action has no basis in law, and charged the Attorney General to take steps to address the issue since it is a gross violation of the rights of Ghanaians.

“We have however checked that Act and all relevant laws including the Regulations passed under the Act. We have not seen any provision that either supports this policy or gives the Registrars of Births and Deaths any power to refuse to register any name. We believe that this stance is a gross violation of the rights of Ghanaians to choose names (particularly Ghanaian names) as they deem fit for their children, subject to the right to change one’s name at any time later in life,” the letter said.

[contextly_sidebar id=”tAiRrm495jbTqeYMfYXkp6Kzb6jfq6Hy”]Occupy Ghana in the letter, which was also copied to the Local Government Minister, called on the Attorney General to order the Registry to stop such acts, else they will proceed to court within the next 30 days.

“We therefore write to put you on notice, in accordance with section 10 of the State Proceedings Act, 1998 (Act 555), that we intend to commence civil action against the Republic within thirty (30) days of the date of this letter if this illegality is not addressed forthwith,” the letter read.

Background

Persons who wish to register names such as Nana, Naa, Junior and the likes were turned away by the Births and Deaths Registry with a reason that such names are  considered as titles and not names.

The Registrar at the Births and Deaths Registry, John Yao Agbeko, justified the action saying the law governing the Registry’s operations – Act 301 (1965) – gives them the power to undertake such exercise.

“There is a law that regulates the activities of the Births and Deaths registry, that law is the Births and Deaths Registration Act 301 of 1965. In this act we have a function for the Minister to do a regulation. In the regulation, there is a function for the registrar to come out with a mode of operation.”

“So even though you will not read it in the act, the regulation allows the registrar to come out with the mode of operation to manage the place and that is what we have done. That is why if you go to Tamale, the one over there will tell you that you cannot register that name. If you pick that same name and you run to Accra, in order to do same, you will be told you can’t do it,” he explained on the Citi Breakfast Show on Thursday.

Blacklisting ‘title’ names illegal – Ace Ankomah fumes

A private legal practitioner, and member of Occupy Ghana, Ace Ankomah, had earlier described as illegal the Births and Deaths Registry’s blacklisting of certain names.

Sharing his view on the matter on the Citi Breakfast Show on Thursday, Ace Ankomah said what the Registry is doing “is not in the law, and it is also not in the regulation that was supposed to have been made under the 1965 Act.”

This nonsense must stop!

“What the law says is that, they should have a mode of operation. The Births and Deaths Registry has no power to make law. Having a mode of operation must comply with the law. So if the fundamental law does not give you a certain power, you cannot be claiming that you have written your own mode of operation to make that power to yourself. So it does not exist, it has no legal basis, that nonsense must stop,” he fumed.

Below is the full statement from Occupy Ghana:

The Attorney-General & Minister for Justice

Ministry of Justice and Attorney-General’s Department

Accra

Dear Madam,

REFUSAL TO REGISTER NAMES AT THE BIRTHS AND DEATHS REGISTRY – NOTICE OF ACTION

Our attention has been drawn to the implementation of an alleged policy by the Registrars of the Birth and Death Registry that refuses to register the birth of children whose names include names such as “Maame,” “Pappa,” “Nana,” “Naa,” “Junior,” “Nene,” “Nii” and “Ohemaa” as well as determine the order in which names must be written, giving prominence to foreign names over indigeneous Ghanaian names. The Registrars claim that they are empowered to do this on the basis of the Registration of Birth and Death Act, 1965 (Act 301).

We have however checked that Act and all relevant laws including the Regulations passed under the Act. We have not seen any provision that either supports this policy or gives the Registrars of Births and Deaths any power to refuse to register any name. We believe that this stance is a gross violation of the rights of Ghanaians to choose names (particularly Ghanaian names) as they deem fit for their children, subject to the right to change one’s name at any time later in life.

We therefore write to put you on notice, in accordance with section 10 of the State Proceedings Act, 1998 (Act 555), that we intend to commence civil action against the Republic within thirty (30) days of the date of this letter if this illegality is not addressed forthwith.

We however believe that this cause of action will not be necessary if all Registrars of the Births and Deaths Registry will be directed to desist from these acts and stop refusing to register such names as they have no basis in law.

Yours faithfully,

OccupyGhana®

  1.      The Minister

Ministry of Local Government

Accra

By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana

 

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Amidu’s appointment doesn’t scare us – Kofi Adams https://citifmonline.com/2018/01/amidus-appointment-doesnt-scare-us-kofi-adams/ Sat, 13 Jan 2018 07:17:27 +0000 http://citifmonline.com/?p=391161 The National Democratic Congress (NDC) is unfazed by the nomination of former Attorney General, Martin Amidu as Special Prosecutor, the National Organiser of the party, Kofi Adams has said. [contextly_sidebar id=”Ovf9AIFvxHXGwhrhGmch9EGUYE8SQIW2″]Mr. Amidu, a member of the NDC and a former Attorney General was nominated as Special Prosecutor on Thursday September 11, 2018. He is expected […]

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The National Democratic Congress (NDC) is unfazed by the nomination of former Attorney General, Martin Amidu as Special Prosecutor, the National Organiser of the party, Kofi Adams has said.

[contextly_sidebar id=”Ovf9AIFvxHXGwhrhGmch9EGUYE8SQIW2″]Mr. Amidu, a member of the NDC and a former Attorney General was nominated as Special Prosecutor on Thursday September 11, 2018.

He is expected to be vetted and approved by Parliament in the coming days.

Sharing his thoughts on Amidu’s nomination on Eyewitness News, Mr. Adams said the party is not scared of a possible witch-hunt by Mr. Amidu who has been an avid critic of the NDC for some time now.

“The President himself was once an Attorney General. We did not fear him and we do not fear him today. Who we fear is God. We believe in the rule of law. We believe in our constitution. We did not fear the Attorney General. How are we going to fear the Special Prosecutor?” Adams said.

‘Amidu’s nomination not surprising’

Mr. Amidu’s nomination, according to Mr. Adams , did not come as a surprise, given his immense support for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) during the 2016 election.

“We are not shocked by this appointment because all along, we expected something even more from Martin Amidu, considering the role that he played for the New Patriotic Party towards the 2016 election and his deafening silence in all acts of corruption that have visited in 2017.”

Mr. Adams also called into question Mr. Amidu’s integrity, wondering why the former AG had never criticized the Akufo Addo government for various corruption scandals that had confronted it.

“You remember we did not hear honourable Amidu on all these things that CDD is complaining about, we did not hear him on the bond issue, we did not hear him on the BOST scandal. We did not hear him on the 100,000 seat to sit by the President,” he said

Asked whether Mr. Amidu will still be considered an NDC member despite his nomination and ongoing disciplinary processes against him, Mr. Adams said the party is analyzing issues to decide on the way forward.

“We are analysing issues and that disciplinary process has not concluded. It is almost at its conclusion. We are almost writing our final report.”

Martin Amidu fights NDC

Mr. Amidu, although a member of the NDC, was an avid critic of his party especially during the 2016 election, where he wrote some disparaging articles against the then government led by John Dramani Mahama, because, in his view, they were corrupt.

He also urged Ghanaians to vote them out of power, which led to some friction between Mr. Amidu and some members of the party.

By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Minister, AG sued over alleged creation of traditional councils in Anlo state https://citifmonline.com/2017/12/minister-ag-sued-over-alleged-creation-of-traditional-councils-in-anlo-state/ Fri, 15 Dec 2017 07:24:03 +0000 http://citifmonline.com/?p=383406 The Awoamefia of Anlo Traditional Area, Togbui Sri III, has filed a suit against the Attorney General and the Minister for Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, over attempts to create two other Traditional Councils in the Anlo State. According to Togbui Sri, the move amounts to an attempt to usurp the authority of the Anlo Traditional Council. […]

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The Awoamefia of Anlo Traditional Area, Togbui Sri III, has filed a suit against the Attorney General and the Minister for Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, over attempts to create two other Traditional Councils in the Anlo State.

According to Togbui Sri, the move amounts to an attempt to usurp the authority of the Anlo Traditional Council.

In the suit, sighted by citifmonline.com, he claimed that the Chieftaincy Minister had written a letter to the Registrar of the Volta Region House of Chiefs announcing his decision to “inaugurate or establish Avenor and Aflao as traditional councils within the Anlo traditional area” after visiting the area.

According to the plaintiff, the Minister does not have the power to create any new traditional councils in the area, arguing that that mandate was vested in him as the Awoamefia of the area.

“Plaintiff avers that, only he as the Awoamefia of the Anlo state or traditional area has the authority by custom, statute and constitutional right to appoint or elevate the Avenor and Aflao divisions of the Anlo state or traditional area as traditional councils. That traditional councils are created by a chief who by custom are vested with such powers and not by constitutional or statutory executive action,” the suit said.

Togbui Sri – The plaintiff

According to the suit, the Chieftaincy Minister intends to “inaugurate Avenor and Aflao divisions of the Anlo state or traditional area as traditional councils on December 14, 2017” without any notice to the Anlo Awoamefia or any acknowledgement of his mandate on the issue.

Togbui Sri is hence seeking an interim injunction on the creation and inauguration of the Traditional Councils until the final determination of the suit.

He also prayed the court to make a declaration that he “by virtue of his position as the Awoamefia of Anlo is the only authority who can create traditional councils in the Anlo traditional area.”

By: Edwin Kwakofi & Michael Ogbodu/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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AG’s application against Indian businessman dismissed again https://citifmonline.com/2017/11/ags-application-against-indian-businessman-dismissed-again/ Wed, 08 Nov 2017 14:36:38 +0000 http://citifmonline.com/?p=369550 The Court of Appeal has dismissed an application of a stay of execution by the Attorney General in the case where the residence and work permits of an Indian Businessman, Ashok Sivaram are under contention. According to the court made up of three justices, the application and argument by the AG were unmeritorious, hence their […]

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The Court of Appeal has dismissed an application of a stay of execution by the Attorney General in the case where the residence and work permits of an Indian Businessman, Ashok Sivaram are under contention.

According to the court made up of three justices, the application and argument by the AG were unmeritorious, hence their decision to dismiss it. The decision by judges brings to four, the number of times the state has lost in its bid to have the businessman thrown out of the country.

[contextly_sidebar id=”8K5n3xyUBPXEnhnnAfLC7belOx0N8e0p”]Wednesday’s ruling follows a new application filed by the Attorney General represented by a state attorney, Jasmine Armah, after it withdrew a similar one last week without any reasons.

The state has been seeking a stay of execution after it was ordered by the High Court to within seven days restore the work and residence permit of the Indian Businessman.

Background

The court on July 31, 2017, quashed the deportation of Mr. Sivaram by the Interior Minister, Ambrose Derry.

According to the court, the Interior Minister exceeded his jurisdiction by determining fraud against the Indian businessman without recourse to the court.

The High Court in September ordered the Immigration service to restore the work and residence permit of Mr. Sivaram within seven days, after months of failing to do so, despite a decision quashing his deportation due to its illegal nature.

But Mr. Sivaram, since his return to the country, has not been given a visa despite a court order.

The Indian businessman has also petitioned President Nana Akufo-Addo to call the Minister of Interior and the Comptroller of the Ghana Immigration Service to order over what he termed as harassment by the two.

Mr. Sivaram said he was constantly being harassed by officials of the Ghana Immigration Service, and he believes his frustrations are part of a grand scheme to transfer interests in his company, Jai Mai Communications Limited, to his business partner.

The Comptroller-General of the Ghana Immigration Service, Kwame Asuah Takyi, has however rejected accusations that he is conniving with the Interior Minister to frustrate the Indian businessman.

By: Fred Djabanor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Group to petition AG, CJ for stiffer punishments for galamsey https://citifmonline.com/2017/10/group-to-petition-ag-cj-for-stiffer-punishments-for-galamsey/ Sun, 29 Oct 2017 08:10:40 +0000 http://citifmonline.com/?p=366253 The Convenor of the Media Coalition Against Galamsey, Kenneth Ashigbey, has hinted of plans to petition the Chief Justice and Attorney Genera,l to consider empowering the law courts to hand out harsh sentences to persons who engage in illegal mining in the country. He is optimistic that stiff and harsh punishment meted to offenders, will serve […]

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The Convenor of the Media Coalition Against Galamsey, Kenneth Ashigbey, has hinted of plans to petition the Chief Justice and Attorney Genera,l to consider empowering the law courts to hand out harsh sentences to persons who engage in illegal mining in the country.

He is optimistic that stiff and harsh punishment meted to offenders, will serve as a deterrent to residents in most mining areas.

“When operation Vanguard and co arrest people and they take them to court, the prosecution is so bad. When it comes to foreigners, the Minerals and Mining Act talks about 30,000 to 300,000 penalty units, or from 10 to 30 years imprisonment. But we have a judge who is giving Chinese people who have been arrested GHc 2,400 fine when the minimum should have been GHc 360,000.00.”

“You have most of the Ghanaians who have just been fined GHc 2,400. That won’t be deterrent enough and it’s akin to all of us including operation vanguard and the media taking a basket to the riverside and hoping we will come back with water. It will not happen,” he lamented.

He commended government’s decision to deploy Operation Vanguard to partner other stakeholders in galamsey areas to fight the national canker that has had serious implications on the environment and water bodies.

Mr. Ashigbey made these observations at a Town Hall Meeting organized by the Media Coalition Against Galamsey in Kenyasi No1, in the Asutifi North District of the Brong Ahafo Region.

He said a lot had been achieved since the fight against galamsey was launched, and appealed to the media for support to sustain the campaign.

“If you monitor the situation on the ground now, you will realize we are gaining back our water bodies, immigration records show the influx of Chinese in the country has reduced, and there is even a proposal for them now to acquire visas when entering the country.”

He said lack of job opportunities and economic conditions, should not be used as justification to engage in the illegal act, as most of the places where galamsey takes place have the most fertile lands, whilst the most sustainable source of the country’s development is agriculture.

Mr. Ashigbey also lamented the sale of fertile lands to illegal miners, and appealed to landowners to protect and preserve the heritage left by the country’s forefathers for generations yet unborn.

He appealed to the government and the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, to speed up the implementation of the government’s five-year Multilateral Mining Integrated Project (MMIP).

Operation Vanguard

The second in command of Operation Vanguard, Chief Supt. Abraham Acquaye, urged residents to be law abiding as they were prepared to do everything possible to bring an end to the menace, in line with the laws of the country.

He said successive governments have all initiated several programmes, interventions and laws, to address illegal mining, but lamented they have not been successful, and therefore assured of their preparedness to help government and majority of Ghanaians whose rights are  being abused to succeed.

He disclosed that, 515 illegal miners have so far been arrested, and put before a court, but lamented only 39 had been convicted.

He therefore expressed concern about the slow pace at which the Police and the Attorney General’s Department were handling the galamsey cases, and appealed to authorities to speed up the process.

Traditional authority’s role

The Omanhene of Kenyasi No.1 Traditional area, Nana Osei Kofi Abiri, who chaired the meeting, commended government and organizers of the programme for the initiative to sensitize the citizenry about the dangers of illegal mining.

He pledged the commitment of chiefs in the area to support the President and the country, to succeed in the fight against galamsey.

The Omanhene advised the youth to channel their energies into agriculture for their self-development and the district at large.

By: Mashoud Kombat, Brong Ahafo/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Woyome’s day of reckoning will come – Deputy AG https://citifmonline.com/2017/10/woyomes-day-of-reckoning-will-come-deputy-ag/ Sat, 21 Oct 2017 08:48:56 +0000 http://citifmonline.com/?p=363521 A Deputy Attorney General, Godfred Dame, has vowed that the government will retrieve the GH¢51 million owed the state by businessman Alfred Agbesi Woyome. He said Mr. Woyome’s “day of reckoning will come” as the state is will employ every legitimate means to retrieve the money. [contextly_sidebar id=”zzP0QZ3TaDgWvylZgSd2aEGiypqgeNRz”]The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed an application […]

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A Deputy Attorney General, Godfred Dame, has vowed that the government will retrieve the GH¢51 million owed the state by businessman Alfred Agbesi Woyome.

He said Mr. Woyome’s “day of reckoning will come” as the state is will employ every legitimate means to retrieve the money.

[contextly_sidebar id=”zzP0QZ3TaDgWvylZgSd2aEGiypqgeNRz”]The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed an application by businessman Alfred Woyome, which sought to stop the seizure and valuation of his properties by the state.

His application came after state officials stormed one of his residences at the plush Trasaco vicinity, to value the property earlier this month.

The court presided by a sole judge, Justice Alfred Benin, described the application as one without merit hence his decision.

The ruling by the court paves the way for the state to continue with the valuation of the properties of Mr. Woyome in its quest to retrieve the money he owes from the judgment debt wrongfully paid to him.

Godfred Dame, who spoke to the media after Friday’s proceedings, said the state is determined to recover the money from Woyome, and will not be deterred by the tactics employed by Woyome to impede the process.

Alfred Woyome
Alfred Woyome

“I can assure you that, nothing will hinder the state in its efforts to recover the money. These are all ploys that will be swept away. No impediment, whatsoever that is placed in the way of the state by Mr. Woyome will prevent the state from recovering the money. Surely the day of reckoning will come,” he said.

Background to saga

Mr. Woyome was paid the GHc 51 million after claiming he helped Ghana raise funds to construct stadia for the hosting of the 2008 African Cup of Nations.

However, an Auditor General’s report released in 2010, held that the amount was paid illegally to him.

Subsequently, the Supreme Court in 2014 ordered Mr. Woyome to pay back the money, after a former Attorney General, Martin Amidu, challenged the legality of the payments.

Following delays in retrieving the money, Supreme Court judges unanimously granted the Attorney-General clearance to execute the court’s judgment, ordering Mr. Woyome to refund the cash to the state.

There had been previous attempts to orally examine Mr. Woyome with Mr. Amidu himself, in 2016, filed an application at the Supreme Court seeking to examine Alfred Woyome, on how he was going to pay back the money, after the Attorney General’s office under the Mahama Administration, led by the former Minister for Justice, Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong, discontinued a similar application.

In February 2017 however, Mr. Amdu withdrew his suit seeking an oral examination, explaining that the change of government and the assurance by the new Attorney General to retrieve all judgement debts wrongfully paid to individuals, had given him renewed confidence in the system.

By: Fred Djabanor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

 

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