Counsel for Ashanti Regional New Patriotic Party (NPP) Chairman Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, has rejected suggestions that his client’s request for plea negotiations in the Exim Bank case amounts to an admission of guilt.
Speaking on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen show, lawyer Andy Appiah-Kubi said the law governing plea bargaining clearly maintains the presumption of innocence until an accused person is proven guilty.
“Opting for a plea bargain doesn’t mean the person is guilty. We opted for plea bargain and have not yet started discussions on the terms, but why is the Attorney-General impugning their own motives?” he questioned.
Chairman Wontumi has formally requested plea negotiations with the Attorney-General in his ongoing criminal trial over an alleged GH¢14.3 million loan fraud involving the Ghana Export-Import Bank (EXIM Bank).
Mr Appiah-Kubi explained that plea bargaining in Ghana is governed by Act 1079, which amended provisions of the Criminal and Other Offences (Procedure) Act.
“The Plea Bargaining Act comes as Act 1079. Section 162 of the previous Act has been amended and captured as 162A on plea negotiations. This law came into effect on July 22, 2022,” he stated.
According to him, many members of the public are unfamiliar with the law and therefore misinterpret the implications of plea negotiations.
“It’s not everyone that knows this provision,” he noted.
He further explained that the law allows negotiations to include the withdrawal of charges against an accused person.
“The plea agreement under Section 162A(1)(b) is to withdraw all the charges against the accused person, which is one of the expectations of the negotiations,” he said.
Mr Appiah-Kubi also cited provisions requiring prosecutors to inform accused persons of their constitutional rights before negotiations begin.
“Section 162A(2)(a) says the prosecutor shall, before the commencement of plea negotiations, inform the accused person of the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty,” he stated.
He maintained that initiating plea negotiations does not amount to an admission of guilt.
“So there is no way that anyone who applies for plea negotiations admits guilt or is guilty. That’s not what the law says,” he stressed.
He added that discussions on the terms of any agreement have not yet begun and questioned the public speculation surrounding the matter.
“For now, we haven’t met to design the terms of negotiations, so why are we in a hurry to prescribe one of them for us when we haven’t indicated a preference?” he asked.
Mr Appiah-Kubi further argued that if negotiations eventually lead to the withdrawal of charges, there would be no basis for claims of conviction.
“If the negotiated position is the withdrawal of the charges, then where is the conviction?” he quizzed.
He called for a better public understanding of plea bargaining procedures, warning against what he described as unnecessary speculation.
“We need to understand these things because the speculation is worrying. It is not fair,” he added.
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