It’s a clear case of manipulation - NDC
Public view favour Fast Track Court reversal to constitutionality
NPP opens door for 2004 flagbearer
Tsatsu: I’m not surprised at the verdict
Electricity Company of Ghana sacks thirty workers
Human trafficking at Kotoka airport takes one life on British Airways
Inspector-General of Police resists retirement
Dutch investor spat on chief over toilet
It’s a clear case of manipulation - NDC
Accra (Greater Accra) 28 June 2002 - The National Democratic Congress (NDC) on Thursday described the Supreme Court’s new decision restoring the Fast Track High Court as a classic evidence of manipulation of the Judiciary to serve political ends. “It said, “This portends endless danger to the country’s every evolving democracy.
Dr N. Josiah-Aryeh, General Secretary of the party, told a press conference in Accra that, “the determination of the government of the NPP to reverse the earlier decision declaring the Fast Track High Court unconstitutional at all cost has been obvious.” He said it is not only by some mysterious agency that the additional members of the panel, Mr Justice Dixon Kwame Afreh and Mr Justice Lamptey, who sided with the Attorney-General, found themselves on the panel.
“Their presence was the result of systematic and deliberate manipulation of the Supreme Court, a fact which their verdict confirmed abundantly,” he said, adding that, “significantly it was Justice Afreh’s ruling that tilted the verdict in the government’s favour, literally providing the icing on the cake.”
He recalled that never in the judicial history in Ghana, since President Kwame Nkrumah dismissed Supreme Court Justices who tried and acquitted the political figures accused of treason, has any government “so blatantly shown its hand at interfering in the composition and workings of the Supreme Court, in order to achieve a particular result in a particular case in a manner that President Kufuor and his NPP government have done in the case.”
Dr Aryeh stated that the government, aided by the Chief Justice who has taken a stance against a decision in which he was part in taking as a member of minority in the substantive case, makes the threat to judicial independence even more serious.
The NDC General Secretary said that the Judiciary is at a crossroads and, indeed, under threat, with dark clouds hanging over it. “Democracy thrives best in countries where the courts remain independent and Justices are not turned into week-kneed puppets. Judicial independence is protected when the courts act boldly in the cause of Justice and stay the hands of political meddlers.”
According to him, this is a matter that should have worried the “new lords” as it entails legal discrimination in matters of life and liberty, an unfortunate point to which unfettered judicial discretion has led to. Dr Josiah-Aryeh said that despite the clear terms of the Supreme Court’s earlier decision, the judges of the “Fast Track High Court” continued to sit and regularly adjourned cases before them, apparently in anticipation of the review, as signalled by the Attorney-General.
He recalled some incidents that happened in the case of Mr Tsatsu Tsikata who was summoned before the High Court only for the case to be thrown out because an unconstitutional charge based on retroactive legislation had been brought against him. Dr Aryeh said what has happened has set a precedence, which is dangerous to the judicial history of the country, because the action of the government presupposes that “anytime a government loses a case at the Supreme Court, it will appoint more judges to overturn the decision in its favour during a review of an earlier decision.” – Daily Graphic.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 28 June 2002 - The Supreme Court’s decision that restored the Fast Track High Court (FTC) on Wednesday has elicited positive response from a cross-section of the public.
While majority of lawyers and laymen interviewed in both Accra and Kumasi welcomed the decision of the Supreme Court to reinstate the FTC, others said they want to get details of the judgement before they make informed opinions.
The immediate past President of the Ghana Bar Association, Mr Ebow Quarshie, said the court’s decision is “appropriate, forward looking and a healthy sign of constitutional and democratic development in the country.” Mr Quarshie described the decision of the court as very practical and said it restores order and civility in society and can contribute to the legal and constitutional development of the country.
An Accra lawyer and Chief Executive of Vehicle Examination and Licence Division (VELD), Mr Joe Osei-Wusu, said the decision of the Supreme Court to restore the FTC is good and a welcome news for the country. Mr Osei-Wusu said he read the Majority argument in the previous Supreme Court judgement of 28 February and concluded that the opinion of the justices were strange since the Constitution, which is the highest legal document clearly empowers the Chief Justice to create divisions of the High Court.
A human rights activist and legal practitioner, Mr Justice Kusi-Minkah-Premo, said that the FTC is good to the extent that it facilitates judicial process and adjudication of cases as well as ensures ready availability and safety of records. He said he is pleased that the Supreme Court has reversed its decision and reinstated the FTCs.
On the criticism that the Supreme Court treated the review as if it was an appeal case, Mr Minkah-Premo said in human rights and constitutional matters where the Supreme Court has original jurisdiction, it is a step in the right direction if the court decides to treat the review as if it is an appeal. He said in law, appeal is different from a review, but the object in both cases is to correct certain errors.
A lawyer at Akosombo Chambers in Accra, Mr B. Cathline, said he will not be able to express an informed legal opinion now until he has access to the details of the judgement of the Supreme Court. Mr Cathline, however, debunked any suggestion that the Supreme Court decisions are determined on the strength of the arguments advanced by the contending parties. He said the justices of superior and lower courts have different positions on the law and they give reasons for adopting such positions.
A former Metropolitan Secretary for the Kumasi Metropolis under the defunct Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) and President of the Ashanti Region branch of the Ghana Bar Association, Mr Dei Kwarteng, said the Supreme Court decision is correct and good for constitutional and legal development of the country. He said he read the arguments of the majority and minority sides in the previous Supreme Court judgement of 28 February and could not agree with the majority decision.
He said the Constitution gives absolute powers to the Chief Justice to create divisions of the High Courts. Mr Kwarteng said the government’s inaction to appoint Justice Kwame Afreh earlier has contributed to the furore surrounding the constitutionality of the Fast Track Court.
An Accra lawyer, Mr Buaben Asamoah, said he will be able to give a legal opinion on the Supreme Court decision after studying the legal positions presented by the justices of the court. He, however, disagreed to a suggestion that the case was decided on the basis of the number of justices who favoured the Attorney-General or Tsatsu Tsikata. He said politics and administration of justice are two big games in all countries.
Dr Bonna Koomson, a Senior lecturer at the School of Communication Studies, University of Ghana, said whenever a matter comes up for review, the honourable and knowledgeable, judges who took certain decisions, are given the opportunity to dispassionately take a second look at their own collective decision. He said he is disappointed that the same number of judges stuck to their earlier positions.
He said it was his expectation that the judges will listen to fresh arguments and perspectives on the issue and come up with a decision, which could go either way.
Mr Alex Adjei, a trader in Accra, said it is unfortunate that loans contracted for the development of the country are sometimes misused by some government officials and people in positions of trust and indicated that such people should be held accountable for the misdeeds.
Mr Collins Buabeng, a plumber, said it is important that leaders of this nation commit themselves to addressing problems facing the people and avoid misusing their positions to mismanage the national resources. Another trader, Mr Yaw Ababio, said he is happy with the court’s decision that the FTC is constitutional and expressed the hope that trial of people in the court will be pursued.
Mr James Nyarko, a self-employed said he is happy with the review because, according to him, those who were accusing the Attorney-General of failing in his duties, after the earlier judgement, have been proved wrong. Madam Franciais Asiam, women’s right activist, said the women in the country will have to rise and express their disapproval against the attempt by the government to influence the judiciary and create a hegemony.
A pensioner, Mr Kwesi Annan, said he is happy with the decision of the Supreme Court since it enforces the country’s principle to ensure the rule of law and punish those who have squandered huge sums of the money belonging to the state. “The FTC should be reinstated to try cases expeditiously. The normal courts take longer periods to adjudicate on matters brought before them,” he said. – Daily Graphic.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 28 June 2002 - With about two and half years to go, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has kicked off its campaign to retain power in the 2004 elections by opening up nominations for the party’s Presidential candidate for the next race.
Interested and eligible members have been asked to complete their applications not later than 3 September, in time for the election of the flagbearer which will take place in early December. Ambitious members should, however, take note that eligibility depends on at least five-year membership of the party.
The call for the nomination process to begin is in consonance with Article 12 of the party’s constitution. This was explained in a statement issued by the party and signed by Kwadwo Antwi-Agyei, on behalf of the party’s General Secretary, Dan Botwe.
According to Article 12 (1), “The election of the party’s presidential candidate shall take place at a National Congress held not later than 24 months from the date of the national election.” Article 12 (2) further enjoins the General Secretary to give notice to party members, inviting application from them “Not later than six months prior to the holding of the National Congress.”
This notice “shall be displayed in a conspicuous place in the Party’s Constituency, Regional and National offices and shall specify the closing date for the application, which shall not be more than five months prior to the holding of the National Congress.”
In inviting nominations, the statement said aspiring presidential candidates must fulfill all the conditions spelt out under Articles 12 (4) of the party’s constitution. Article 12 (4) says no member shall be entitled to nomination as the party’s presidential candidate unless he or she “Is a known and active member for at least five years; is of good character; is otherwise of good standing; has paid the prescribed fee for presidential aspirants by the deadline set by the National Executive Committee; is found to be qualified to be a presidential candidate by the Vetting Committee; has signed the ‘Undertaking for Presidential Aspirants” and that the member’s nomination has been endorsed in writing “by at least 100 members in good standing, ten from each Region.
Meanwhile, party gurus are finalising elaborate programmes to mark the party’s 10-year anniversary. This was among the topics discussed at Thursday’s National Executive Council meeting held at the party’s headquarters in Accra. The anniversary is scheduled for July. – The Statesman.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 28 June 2002 - The former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) Tsatsu Tsikata has said that he is not surprised at the Supreme Court’s reversal of its 28 February 2002 decision on the Fast Track Court. According to him, there was collaboration between the Executive and the Judiciary against him.
Mr Tsatsu’s reaction follows Wednesday’s 6-5 ruling by the court in favor of the Attorney-General that the Fast Track High Court has all the legal standing and could operate. “A particular Judge was brought in to come and rule in their favours so I am not surprised at all,” he said.
The Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Nana Akufo Addo told newsmen after the ruling that the 6-5 decision by the court to uphold the constitutionality of the Fast Track High Court shows that the government’s committee to rule of law had been established.
He said the original decision of the court on 28 February was fundamentally wrong and perverse. Those who ruled in favour of the FTC were Justices George Acquah, Williams Atugubah, Sophia Akuffo, George Lamptey and Kwame Afreh. The Justices who ruled against the ruling were Justices Joyce Bamford-Addo, A.K.B Ampiah, E.D.K. Adjabeng, F.K. Kpegah and T.K Adzoe.
The processing, which began at exactly 10,00 am, was marked by tension, anxiety and captured all that drama could provide. The court was fully packed and the audiences in the heated room were seen either wiping sweat off their foreheads or fanning themselves with any conceivable object.
As each of the judges gave their ruling, people in the court sat on tenterhooks at they did not know in which direction the Supreme Court would go. Some of the members of the panel could speak for as long as 45 minutes to one hour, the longest perhaps coming from Justice Kwame Afreh and Justices Kpegah.
As these long proceedings dragged on, journalists who showed tiredness and lack of stamina trooped out of the court to take fresh air. The TV cameramen seemed to have abandoned their equipment and, on of their faces, one could tell that they wished proceedings could have ended. One journalist was heard saying, “This is one of my hectic times in court.”
Unlike the previous sitting in which the National Democratic Congress gurus were conspicuously absent, on Tuesday proceeding was attended by Mr John Mahama, NDC Director for Communication, Dr Josiah Ayeh, General Secretary, Baba Camara, Deputy General Secretary, and Ms Frances Essiam, NDC Women Organiser. – The Evening News.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 28 June 2002 - Mr Alban Bagbin, the Minority Leader in Parliament has urged the government to act with dispatch and get the Freedom of Information and the Whistle Blowers Bill to brought before Parliament for enactment.
The Freedom of Information Act, when passed into law, will among others, empower public officials to give out useful information freely to the media while, “the Whistle Blowers Act” seeks to protect people who provide information leading to the detection of corruption.
Mr Bagbin who was speaking in an interview with The Evening News in Accra said the two bills are in custody of the government, which has the sole constitutional prerogative to introduce it in parliament. He said that could only be done after Article 108 (iii) of the constitution is amended.
Mr Bagbin said the article forbids any bill that can commit the government financially from being introduced by the legislature except government. Article 108 (iii) of constitution reads: “Parliament shall not, unless the bill is introduced or the motion is introduced by, or on behalf of the President proceed upon a bill including an amendment to a bill, that, in the opinion of the person presiding, makes provision for any of the following”.
“The payment, issue or withdrawal from the Consolidated Fund, or other public funds of Ghana of any moneys not charged on the Consolidated Fund or any increase in the amount of that payment, issue or withdrawal.” He said the NPP should not only liberate the media physically by repealing the criminal law but should take steps to amend laws admitting private member’s motions.
Contributing, Mr John Mahama, the Minority Spokesperson on Communications, said Parliament would need a certain level of resources to be able to prepare the drafts of private members’ bills.
Unlike the British Parliament, where MPs are well paid with Research Assistants and supporting staff to initiate their own bills, MPs of Ghana’s Parliament do not have offices he said. Mr Mahama said NDC MPs who numbered 92 are compelled to fall on two secretaries within the Minority Secretariat to assist them to prepare Parliamentary documents.
Mr Mahama said who is NDC MP for Bole said drawing up a private members bill involves a huge financial outlay, saying the drafts on the Freedom of Information and the Whistle Blowers Acts for instance, could not have realised without the financial support of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA). He said assignment also require experienced researchers and draft men to shape the bills in the suitable form. - The Evening News.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 28 June 2002 - On 28 November 1996, Dan Abodakpi, then Deputy Minister of Trade wrote to Emmanuel A. Agbodo, Executive Secretary of the Divestiture Implementation Committee (DIC), asking that $400,000 (about ¢3 billion) of DIC money be paid to Goldshield Contact Services Limited, listed on the company’s letterhead as an “International Consulting Firm.”
The letter stated that the $400,000 was DIC’s contribution towards the company’s operational cost for coordinating trade and investment promotion activities involving Ghana and a number of South-East Asian countries. The amount was duly paid from the dollar account of DIC at the Bank of Ghana (BOG) in Accra, to an account at the Bishopgate Branch of Barclays Bank in London.
In addition to the $400,000, Goldshield submitted a bill for $69,000 for services in respect of the divestiture of the Ghana Film Industry Company. This was also paid. Six years down the line, not only are officials of DIC unable to quantify the services rendered by the Goldshield Services Limited, but they also have no records of the company’s contact address.
“We know that two brothers were involved with Goldshield- Rueben and Ellis Atekpe. We learned that they are relatives of the former Deputy Minister, but we cannot put a finger on what they have done. These requests come and we paid. Please note that those were very different times. We might have been paying money to a ghost company,” a DIC insider told the Agenda.
“As you are aware,” wrote Abodakpi in his letter of 28 November, “Goldshield Contact Limited has been mandated to coordinate trade and investment promotion activities for certain south-east Asian nations, including Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore. In pursuit of this objective, Goldshield is to establish an office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to service the region. As you are no doubt aware, the Divestiture Implementation Committee’s work has greatly been facilitated in South-Africa Asia by Goldshield Services.
Consequently, it is requested that the DIC should contribute towards the operational cost of Goldshield Services in the region for that last three years which, we are advised, runs into over half a million dollars and also assist in the setting up of a permanent office in Kuala Lumpur,” the letter said.
On 2 December the same year, Agbodo asked his accountant, Richard Nana Akuffo to arrange payment. “Nana, please arrange transfer of $400,000 to the account of Goldshield,” Agbodo wrote and signed.
The same day, a transfer request was addressed to the Assistant Director, Banking Department of BOG in Accra, signed by Agbodo and DIC accountant, Akuffo, asking for the transfer of $400,000 to Goldshield through Barclays Bank, at No 155 Bishopgate in London.
On 18 November 1996, Goldshield Services wrote to the Executive Secretary, Agbodo, demanding $13,130.20. The letter signed by Rueben Atekpe as Director said the money was towards two return tickets- Accra-Kualar Lumpur return per KLM invoices attached- and hotel accommodation for five nights. Two days later, Agbodo initialed the request for payment. It is not known whether this amount was paid.
When the Weekend Agenda contacted Agbodo, he told the paper that he has the inclination that he would be summoned somewhere to dilate on the issue and would therefore, not like to prejudice his position.
However, former deputy Minister Abodakpi in an interview, said, “My heart bleeds at the way some of us are being persecuted after giving all the services we have rendered this nation.” He said the $400,000 that DIC paid was on behalf of the divestiture company, the Private Enterprise Foundation (PEF) and the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) which all benefited from the services rendered in South East Asia by Goldshield.
Divestiture paid on behalf of all these state institutions, which were not in financial standing to meet their obligations, he explained and directed the paper to PEF and GIPC. He said the executive secretary of PEF, Mr Kwesi Abeasi, for instance, had been on some of the trips to Malaysia and Singapore arranged and coordinated by Goldshield.
Abeasi, when contacted, admitted having been part of official delegation to the far East but however, denied that the trips were arranged and coordinated by Goldshield. “I have seen two boys- Rueben and Ellis Atekpe- listed as Directors of Goldshield, on some of these trips. But the trips were not coordinated by them. We paid our own passage, hotel bills and other incidentals. We were down there on our own initiatives and those of Ghana missions there.”
Agenda learned through series of contacts that Ellis works for Home Finance Company (HFC) while Rueben was, at that point in time, with the School of Administration, University of Ghana. It was not clear whether the latter was a lecturer, one of the workers or a student.
When located at the HFC, Ellis Atekpe told the Agenda that Goldshield is a United Kingdom-based company but when asked why there is no contact address on the letterheads used to write to the DIC, his response was that the issue could not be properly addressed in his office, while a later appointment was also not possible.
He disputed the assertion that Goldshield’s address was not provided in their communications with DIC, saying it was the method of photocopying the document in Agenda’s possession that had taken away the address. – Weekend Agenda.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 28 June 2002 - The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has between January and June 2002, dismissed 30 employees of the company for various offences. The dismissed officers include two Regional Management staff, engineers, technicians and artisans.
A statement issued by the ECG and signed by Mr Fred Asante, Managing Director of the company, mentioned the offences as theft, financial malfeasance, illegal connections, forgery and falsification of accounts, diversion of materials, fraud and defrauding of both customers and company.” Investigation implicated the affected staff resulting in the their dismissal.
The statement said that the management of ECG was leaving no stone unturned to instill discipline and honesty in all aspects of its business. The statement therefore urged the staff to exhibit high moral standards and uprightness to maintain the credibility of the company.
Meanwhile, the company is working towards replacing its credit meters with prepayment meters. According to Mr Asante, about 700,000 prepayment meters would be installed within the next five years. He was speaking when he received pre-qualification proposal from contractors. The statement explained that, EGC had over the years had a lot of difficulties in collecting its billed revenue from customers thus saddling it with a huge financial burden. The new system would therefore improve on the situation.
It said to realise the company’s plans to replace most of its credit meters in the next two years and continue with the two placements programme as well as the installation of prepayment meters on new premises over the next five years, private operators would be engaged to operate the installed system on behalf of the company.
He admitted that ECG’s commercial problems would not end overnight with the implementation of the prepayment-metering project, since the company would have to deal with illegal connection. – The Ghanaian Times.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 28 June 2002 - Officials of British Airways in Ghana are tight lipped over a dead man found in the under carriage bay of the British Airways flight Ghana to London’s Heathrow Airport 14 May this year. Whilst British Airways is maintaining silence on the matter and would not answer questions from the media, the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) says the dead man found on the British Airways flight cannot be a Ghanaian.
Speaking to the Ghana palaver in his office, the Acting Director of GCAA, Capt (rtd) Joe Boachie, said since the dead man was not discovered on the British Airways on arrival at the Heathrow Airport on the it arrived and the plane had to travel to Saudi Arabia and back before the dead was discovered, means that the dead man cannot be a Ghanaian. He however said, his outfit is waiting for a report on the matter from the London office of the British Airways.
Before the death of the unknown passenger on the British Airways, GCAA had been granted a category one status by the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) of the United States of America (USA) after a security Audit Check at the Kotoka International Airport.
This enables most of the world’s reputable airlines to fly into Ghana without any fear of security threats and Ghana’s only airline- the Ghana Airways, was granted permission to fly direct to U.S. At the time, Col (rtd) Nat Kpikpitse, was the Security Manager but was asked to proceed on leave as soon as the new administration of President Kufour assumed office. The Security Coordinator was also sent on secondment.
Capt (rtd) John Amoah, who was in-charge of training, was therefore elevated to the position of Security Manager. Capt (rtd) John Amoah himself did not stay long at the post and had to be reshuffled and sent back to the Training school because Dr Amoako Tuffour wanted him to absorb forty (40) men into the GCAA security network without training but he refused.
His reason for refusing Dr Amoako Tuffour’s request was that such an arrangement was against the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO) regulations to engage untrained people into the Aviation security network.
As a result, he did not give the forty (40) untrained security men identity cards to operate at the Airport, especially the sensitive areas namely, the arrival and departure halls and the VIP. These untrained security men, Ghana Palaver’s investigations reveal are currently engaged at the Airport and they are the security guards engaged in the Human Trafficking going on at the Airport.
These men are made up of party supporters brought in by top New Patriotic Party (NPP) leaders as a way of fulfilling their election campaign promise of offering them jobs.
The GCAA Security network is now being coordinated by Ms Rita Asobayere, who once worked with the Authority but vacated her post for various malfeasances, in connection with duties. When some members of staff opposed her re-engagement and her ¢2 million a month salary, the management of GCCA quietly sent her to Kumasi, where she spent just two weeks and came back to Accra.
Not even a single one of the GCAA security guards passed a security test conducted by the KLM and British Airways for which the airlines wrote to GCAA management expressing their disappointment at the falling standards of security at the Airport, Ghana Palaver investigations has revealed.
The paper’s sources have established that some members of the security network at the airport have taken advantage of the security weakness to smuggle people unto aircraft during departure. Those smuggled unto the aircraft and are able to survive the journey find their destination, but those who are not able to survive die like the dead man found on the British Airways flight. The discovery of the dead man on the British Airways plane has sparked off serious security lapses at the KIA. - Ghana Palaver.
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Accra (Greater Accra) 28 June 2002 - The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Ernest Owusu Poku, is to hold a crucial meeting with senior Police Officers in Accra on Friday to solicit support in his bid to remain in office, despite his retirement, which was due last month. The meeting follows desperate attempts by the IGP for extension of stay.
He has virtually been knocking at almost every door of influence to plead on his behalf. The Asantehene, on his way to Holland, is reported to have also intervened, on behalf of the IGP, during a courtesy call on the President. The IGP had earlier stayed in office during the whole period of terminal leave in spite of grumbling within the police administration.
It will be recalled that when Mr Poku assumed office, his first major act was to order the termination of appointment of all retired police officers, which were on contract, claiming that he could not work with “tired old men”.
The affected retired officers, upon hearing the maneuvres of Mr Poku, are therefore threatening to go court over the matter, if the Kufour Administration yields to the Asantehene’s pressure on behalf of Mr Poku. According to reports, Mr Poku is most unfriendly to his subordinates, and they wish him out, as a good riddance.
Observances have also noted the dispatch with which soldiers, due for retirement, are being sent home and wonder why there should be special consideration for the present IGP. “What is good for the goose, is for the gander,” they say. - Ghanaian Palaver.
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Somanya (Eastern Region) 28 June 2002 - A Dutch investor, John Vonberg, allegedly assaulted a traditional ruler with blows and saliva and asked him to go and ease himself in the bush after the chief demanded of Vonberg to deliver on his promise to provide KVIP toilet for the chief and his people.
The divisional chief of the Yilo Krobo Traditional Council and his elders have since declared John Vonberg a “persona-non-grata at Kplandey, near Somanya in the Eastern Region.
The chief, Nene Akpatsu Azza IV, who disclosed this at a press conference at Somanya last Tuesday, said Vonberg physically attacked him and spat at his face, whiles calling him ‘monkey’ on 16 August 2001. The Dutchman, the chief said, was arrested and granted ¢1 million bail by the Airport Police but allegedly jumped bail. The chief is also accusing unnamed officials of conniving with a racist to abscond from police cell.
Nene Akpatsu Azza IV said Vonberg, who is a director of Messieurs Bonsu-Vonberg Farms Limited, acquired a land at Kplandey near Somanya, for teak plantation, four years ago and promised to provide a KVIP for the people. On 16 August 2001, Nene travelled to Accra with two family members, Armstrong Narh and Mate Kroam, to meet a Ghanaian director of the company, Nana Osei Bonsu about the delay in providing the KVIP. But while waiting for him, Vonberg came and took them to his office.
The chief said when he informed Vonberg of their mission, “the white man flew into complete tantrums and started to rain insults on us, calling us monkeys and telling us to go into the bush to shit.”
Narrating the alleged assault, Nene Akpatsu Azza said not only did Vonberg spray saliva directly into his face, he also tore the chief’s neck chain and gave the Krobo royal a hefty slap on his cheek. In this, extreme provocation the chief said he conducted himself with dignity and composure bearing in mind that he was in Vongerg’s office.
The matter was then reported to the Airport Police in Accra, near the place of the incident. The chief told newsmen that the suspect was arrested and granted ¢1 million bail but later absconded and his surety, Nana Osei Bonsu, was ordered by a Community Tribunal in Accra to pay the bail bond.
Nene Akpatsu Azza said: “We are confronted with a situation where it is becoming abundantly clear that our own officials have seriously compromised the entire case by unashamedly prejudicing the case and throwing their entire weight behind the racist behaviour of the Dutch national. From what we have heard everything possible is being done to protect the white man’s investment in Ghana.”
He said what is happening clearly shows “a carefully orchestrated attempt by public officials to place Vonberg above the laws of the country and deny us justice.”
“We have no problem with any investor of whatever nationality who wants to do business with us but what we deplore and abhor is a person who comes into this country and who, on the basis of his colour or his means wishes to treat us like nobodies in our own country,” he declared.
Nene Akpatsu Azza, however, said that if Vonberg would regret his action and come forward to render an apology and pacify him, his elders and the family on whose land he has the teak plantation, “we will forgive him of all his sins.” – The Statesman.
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