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Justice Honyenuga: Opuni fails to remove retired judge from case

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Justice Honyenuga: Opuni fails to remove retired judge from case

Justice Honyenuga: Opuni fails to remove retired judge from case

The High Court in Accra has dismissed an application by former Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Dr Stephen Opuni, which sought to remove the retired judge from continuing to preside over his case.

Dr Opuni, acting through his lawyers, had argued that the Chief Justice was not clothed with the power to extend retired Justice Clemence Honyenuga’s tenure by six months to continue hearing the case.

Context

Justice Honyenuga, a Supreme Court judge presiding over the case at the High Court judge, was due for retirement in September 2022.

Prior to his statutory retirement at age 70 for Supreme Court Justices, the Chief Justice, Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah, supposedly in accordance with Article 145 of the 1992 Constitution, gave the retired judge six more months to conclude the case, which has been before the court since 2018.

 

Article 145(4) of the Constitution states: “Notwithstanding that he has attained the age at which he is required by this article to vacate his office, a person holding office as a Justice of a Superior Court or Chairman of a Regional Tribunal may continue in office for a period not exceeding six months after attaining that age, as may be necessary to enable him to deliver judgment or do any other thing in relation to proceedings that were commenced before him previous to his attaining that age”.

According to the lawyers of Dr Opuni, the appointing authority, which is the President, was the only person clothed with the power to extend Justice Honyenuga’s tenure and not the Chief Justice.

Ruling

However, in a ruling last Monday, Justice Honyenuga dismissed the application on grounds that the Chief Justice exercised his administrative power as the head of the judiciary when he extended his (Honyenuga’s) tenure in accordance with Article 145 of the 1992 Constitution.

Dr Opuni together with businessman, Seidu Agongo, are on trial for allegedly causing over GH¢217 million financial loss to the state in the supply and purchase of lithovit liquid fertiliser.

The two are before an Accra High Court slapped with 27 charges, including causing financial loss to the state, defrauding by false pretences, conspiracy to commit crime, abetment of crime, money laundering, and corruption by public officer and contravention of the Public Procurement Authority Act.

Application

Moving the motion counsel for Dr Opuni, Samuel Codjoe submitted that the Chief Justice engaged in an “unconstitutional act” when he extended the tenure of Justice Honyenuga.

Counsel added that the power to extend the tenure of a Supreme Court could not be exercised by the Chief Justice who was not the appointing authority.

“The only person who can grant an extension to the tenure of your lordship as contained in Article 145(4) is the President and not the Chief Justice,” he said.

Counsel added that although the Chief Justice was the administrative head of the judiciary, he could not grant an extension to the tenure of a judge who had attained the mandatory constitutional retirement age, hence the Chief Justice usurped the powers of the President.

Opposition

The Director of Public Prosecutions, Yvonne Atakora Obuobisa, opposed the application.

“The appointment and removal from office of a justice of the superior court is different from an extension to a judge previously hearing a case to continue with the matter for a limited period of time, and the Constitution handles them differently,” she said.

She added that in Articles 144 and 146 of the 1992 Constitution, the drafters of the Constitution said it was the President who appointed and removed Justices of the superior court.

“Nowhere in Article 139 or 145(4) is the President mentioned, and if the drafters intended for the President to give an extension, they would have stated so,” she added.

The presiding judge in dismissing the application indicated that the Chief Justice as the administrative head of the Judiciary had the power under the Constitution to extend the service of a retiring judge for the six-month period.

The case has been adjourned to November 16, 2022, for the trial to continue.

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England defender Harry Maguire gets roasted in Ghanaian parliament (Video)

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Harry Maguire, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and Isaac Adongo

Harry Maguire, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and Isaac Adongo

England defender Harry Maguire has been mocked by a Ghanaian MP who used a football analogy to describe the nation’s vice president.

Hon. Issac Adongo labelled the country’s Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia as an “Economic Maguire”, likening his performance in the role to Maguire’s decline since joining Manchester United.

Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia is a Ghanaian economist and former central banker who serves as the 5th Vice President of Ghana in the 4th Ghanaian Republic.

“…tackling Manchester players and giving assists to opponents. Mr Speaker, when the opponent failed to score, Maguire will score for them,” Mr Adongo said, as laughter erupted in the chamber.

“Mr Speaker, you remember in this country we also have an economic Maguire.”

Mr Isaac Adongo is a Ghanaian politician and member of the 8th Ghanian Parliament representing the Bolgatanga Central Constituency in the Upper East Region on the ticket of the National Democratic Congress. He was first elected in 2016 and he was re-elected in 2020.

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Parliament to begin implementing no scanning, no entry directive today

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Parliament to begin implementing no scanning, no entry directive today

The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, has served notice to Members of Parliament and visitors to the House to comply with newly instituted security measures that require anyone seeking entry to the Chamber to be scanned before entry is granted.

Speaker Bagbin instructed that any Member of Parliament or visitor that fails to comply with the new directive should be denied entry to the Chamber effective Thursday, November 17.

The Speaker says all persons who seek to enter the Chamber must go through the newly installed scanners in the House as part of measures to beef up security.

“It is compulsory for all members including me to pass through the machines to be scanned before we enter the Chamber of Parliament”.

“All strangers who intend coming to the public gallery, or to the press gallery, or to the important visitors gallery are all to pass through the scanning machines. Starting from Thursday, anybody who is not willing to pass through those machines will definitely not be allowed to enter this Chamber.”

The beefing up of security at the House was first raised two years ago by the then Speaker, Professor Mike Oquaye who pleaded for additional security attaché to legislators.

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PIAC, GNPC expected at Ofori-Atta censure hearing today

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PIAC, GNPC expected at Ofori-Atta censure hearing today

The committee of Parliament probing allegations in a censure motion against the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, is expected to resume sittings today, Thursday with an appearance by the Public Interest Accountability Committee (PIAC) and the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC).

In a Facebook post, the North Tongu MP, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, said PIAC and GNPC are expected before the committee at 11 am today.

GNPC is the state agency responsible for the exploration, licensing, and distribution of petroleum-related activities in Ghana, while PIAC is an independent statutory body mandated to promote transparency and accountability in the management of petroleum revenue in Ghana.

This comes after proponents of the motion, the Minority, were heard on their grounds for their allegations of conflict of interest and financial recklessness levelled against the Finance Minister for censure against him.

The Minority, represented by the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu and, Minority Spokesperson on Finance, Cassiel Ato Forson, cited PIAC reports from 2019 to 2022 and the Petroleum Management Act as some of the basis for their allegations against the Mr. Ofori-Atta.

Mr. Ofori-Atta, will on Friday be expected to put up a defence to the Minority’s push for a vote of censure against him.

He had requested time to prepare based on the evidence tendered to the committee by the Minority.

The evidence included IMF staff reports from 2018 to 2021, fiscal data from the Ministry of Finance, Budget statements from 2019 to 2022, mid-year budget statements from 2019 to 2022 and the Auditor General reports from 2018 to 2020.

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