By An Accra High Court has ruled that the call for an inquiry into the Attorney General’s conduct regarding the ongoing Ambulance case lacks merit.
This verdict is one of four separate rulings delivered by the court on Thursday, June 6, in response to various applications filed by the first accused individual and the third accused, Richard Jakpa.
The applications include a request for an inquiry into the Attorney-General’s conduct, prompted by allegations from Richard Jakpa that the A-G has been contacting him at unconventional hours; a motion for mistrial aimed at halting the case; a plea for proceedings to be suspended until the application is resolved; and a motion urging the court to dismiss charges against the businessman.
The Minority Leader and former Deputy Finance Minister, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, lodged three of the motions, with the businessman submitting the fourth.
Dr. Ato Forson and Richard Jakpa face trial for allegedly causing a €2.37 million financial loss to the state through a contract to procure 200 ambulances for the Ministry of Health, among other charges.
Regarding the inquiry into the Attorney-General’s alleged calls at irregular hours, Justice Afia Serwah Asare-Botwe concluded that the request lacked legal justification.
The judge also declined the invitation to declare the case a mistrial.
Background:
In recent developments, during cross-examination last month, Richard Jakpa disclosed that the Attorney General had been reaching out to him at unconventional hours to seek testimony against the Minority Leader, Dr. Ato Forson.
This disclosure has ignited debates among Ghanaians, with some advocating for the resignation of Attorney General Godfred Dame.
Dr. Ato Forson, former Deputy Finance Minister and current Minority Leader, is presently facing trial for his purported role in the acquisition of faulty ambulances for Ghana.
During a press briefing, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) aired a 16-minute recording purportedly depicting a conversation between the Attorney General and Jakpa.
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) countered the assertions made in the audio, stating that it has been “doctored and manipulated” with malicious intent.
