The Chief Justice Kwasi Anin-Yeboah has empanelled two new judges to join the Supreme Court’s ordinary bench for the hearing of the attorney general’s review application to overturn earlier ruling.
The state is praying the apex court to overturn its own earlier decision to remove one of its colleagues, Justice Clemence Jackson Honyenuga, from the Stephen Opuni-Seidu Agongo criminal case.
The two new judges, according to the Herald newspaper are Nene Abayaateye Ofoe Amegatcher and Prof Emmanuel Nii Ashie Kotey.
They are to join their five colleagues to hear arguments from state prosecutors and the defence teams of Dr. Opuni and businessman Agongo, to ascertain whether or not Justice Honyenuga had, indeed, been biased, as declared in the 3:2 majority decision of the ordinary bench some weeks ago.
The date for the review is Tuesday, October 12, 2021.
The paper also reported that it is not the first time the state has availed itself of the right to file for a review at the Supreme Court.
There was an instance in the Tsatsu Tsikata v. the Republic of Ghana case under President John Agyekum Kufuor, during which now-President Nana Akufo-Addo, who was the Attorney General and Minister of Justice at the time, filed a review application, just as has been done by his Attorney General Godfred Dame in the Opuni-Agongo case, to overturn a decision by the Supreme Court which did not favour the government at the time.
The ordinary bench, presided over by Justice Jones Mawulorm Dotse, on 28 July 2021, upheld Dr Opuni’s prayer for the removal of Justice Honyenuga from the case, in which he and Mr Agongo are being tried for causing the state to lose some GHS271 million through fraudulent means in the procurement of fertiliser for Ghana Cocoa Board.
The other members of the ordinary panel included Justices Gabriel Pwamang, Agnes Dordzie, Avril Lovelace-Johnson and Issifu Omoro Tanko Amadu.
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