Lawyers of Businessmen Seidu Agongo and Agricult Ghana Limited, the 2nd and 3rd Accused in the ongoing Ghana Cocoa Board trial have accused the Attorney General of monitoring their client’s visits to the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH).
The lawyers told the High Court that Attorney General Godfred Yeboah Dame had sent officers to the KBTH to ascertain whether Mr Agongo had visited the facility or not.
The Chief Executive Officer of Agricult is said to have visited the facility after last Tuesday’s court session but was absent on Wednesday’s proceedings leading to an adjournment.
Apprising the court on the absence of Mr Agongo, Lawyer Nutifafa Nutsukpi told the court that “the Prosecutor, in this case, being the Attorney General spoke with or sent officers to verify at the hospital that indeed the 2nd Accused was receiving treatment or been seen at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital.”
“As a result of that intervention the second accused was kept from the morning to around 4 or 5 pm,” Counsel told the court.
“My lord, it is our understanding that after he returned home, he was still unwell and at night, being Tuesday, he was sent to the 37 Military Hospital where he is currently on admission.
“As we speak we understand tests including MRI Scans are being run on him. I’m not in a position to say what he presented with at the hospital last night or what investigations are being carried out on him presently.”
Asked by the court how he came by that information, he said the information was related “to me by the doctors attending to him.”
When asked again if it was because of the alleged information from the doctors that led to the second accused leaving the facility between 4 and 5 pm, counsel said it seems so.
“That seems to me to be his understanding. Because none of his previous sessions has ever taken that long.”
Immediate response
Stella Ohene Appiah, a Principal State Attorney in her immediate response said, “I’m unable to confirm what counsel has just told the court about Attorney General sending people to the KBTH to confirm the attendance of A2 to that facility.
“I must say that, I sent a word to my senior in this case on what counsel said about the visit to Korle-Bu and she is also checking to find out whether that is the position and so we cannot say for sure what counsel is saying to the court is the case until we have verified from the office,” the Principal State Attorney remarked.
By Court
In order to ascertain the truth or otherwise of the allegation, Justice Honyenuga ordered “the principal state attorney to find out from the Attorney General whether or not he sent any person or persons to verify whether the Second Accused had attended the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital yesterday (February 7 and report to this court on the next adjourned date.”
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Meanwhile, the court further ordered “the Registrar of this court to go to the 37 Military Hospital to find out whether indeed the second Accused is on admission at the said hospital. The registrar shall report his findings to this court by the next adjourned date.”
“It further ordered that the second accused shall produce to this court medical report on Admission at the 37 Military Hospital at the next adjourned date,” Justice Clemence Honyenuga, a Justice of the Supreme Court sitting as an additional High Court judge ordered.
Hearing continues on Monday, February 13.
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