GAO AND OTHERS vs. THE REPUBLIC [1973]DLHC2279

Date	1973-01-16
Suit No.
Citation No.	[1973]DLHC2279

OSEI-HWERE J

DR. ANKAMAH FOR THE APPELLANTS.

R. KYEI ASSISTANT STATE ATTORNEY FOR THE RESPONDENT.

[1973]DLHC2279
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" ><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:Times;
mso-bidi-font-family:Times;color:#548DD4;mso-themecolor:text2;mso-themetint:
153">GAO AND OTHERS<o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:Times;
mso-bidi-font-family:Times;color:#548DD4;mso-themecolor:text2;mso-themetint:
153">&nbsp;vs. <o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:Times;
mso-bidi-font-family:Times;color:#548DD4;mso-themecolor:text2;mso-themetint:
153">THE REPUBLIC <o:p></o:p>[HIGH COURT,
SUNYANI]<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;[1974] 1 GLR 23<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

DATE:
16 JANUARY 1973.<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 0in 0in">

DR.
ANKAMAH FOR THE APPELLANTS.<o:p></o:p>

R. KYEI,
ASSISTANT STATE ATTORNEY, FOR THE RESPONDENT.<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:
<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 0in 0in">

OSEI-HWERE J<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>JUDGMENT OF OSEI-HWERE J.<o:p></o:p>The
appellants were arraigned before the District Court Grade I, Wenchi, on a
charge of “Breach of Aliens Compliance Order” [sic.] contrary to sections 2 (2)
and 25 (1) (d) of the Aliens Act, 1963 (Act 160). Section 2 subsection (2) of
the Aliens Act, 1963 (Act 160), provides that, “Where a person enters Ghana at
a place to which an immigration officer is assigned, he shall, on his arrival,
appear before the immigration officer at that place. Whilst section 25
subsection (1) (d) of the same Act also stipulates that, “(1) Any person who
does any of the following— . . . (d) disobeys or disregards any obligation or
direction imposed by or under the provisions of this Act . . . shall be guilty
of an offence . . .” The appellants pleaded guilty to the charge and they were
convicted and sentenced to a term of one month’s imprisonment with hard labour
each. In addition the magistrate recommended that the appellants be deported
from Ghana after serving the sentence.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The
recorded facts in support o the charge are that the police, upon information,
visited Nkonsia (a village within the Wenchi district) where they found the
appellants loitering about. They were interrogated but they could not give any
reasonable explanation for their presence there. They could not produce their
residence permits as they said they had none. All the appellants admitted
before the trial court that they were aliens from Mali. The first appellant
said that he had been in Ghana for about six months at the time of his arrest
and that even though he had no passport he had travel documents at Kumasi. Both
the second and the third appellants had no documents whatsoever. Before this
court it was urged on their behalf that they all have now obtained their
residence permits. I had occasion to examine the documents they now produced
and I found out that they were identity cards issued by their embassy to them
on which the residence permits had been endorsed. It became clear to me that as
they had no travel documents whatsoever when they entered Ghana they could not
have entered legally and they are only lucky that they were not charged under
section 2A of Act 160, inserted by the Aliens (Amendment) Act, 1965 (Act 265),
for illegal entry with its minimum punishment of ten years’ imprisonment with
hard labour.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The
appellants appeal against the order of the trial magistrate and the only ground
filed is that the magistrate erred in ordering their deportation. In supporting
this ground counsel for the appellants took the not quite unfamiliar stand that
by section 25 (2) of Act 160, the punishment for the offence with which the
appellants were charged is “a fine of fifty pounds (¢100.00) or to imprisonment
for six months, or to both.”. Inasmuch as there is an option of a fine, so
argued counsel, the court cannot recommend deportation. Counsel arrived at this
conclusion by seeking umbrage under section 12 (1) (a) and (2) of Act 160. The
relevant provisions are as follows:<o:p></o:p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:5.0pt;
margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;mso-pagination:none;border:none;mso-padding-alt:
31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes">“12. (1)
An alien is liable to deportation -<o:p></o:p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:5.0pt;
margin-left:1.5in;text-align:justify;mso-pagination:none;border:none;
mso-padding-alt:31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes">(a). if a Court recommendation for his
deportation is effective under the following subsection; or . . . <o:p></o:p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:5.0pt;
margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;mso-pagination:none;border:none;mso-padding-alt:
31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes">(2) A
court recommendation for the deportation of alien shall be effective for the
purposes of paragraph (a) of the preceding subsection if it was made by a court
on conviction of an offence for which the court had power to impose a sentence
of imprisonment without the option of a fine, and—<o:p></o:p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:5.0pt;
margin-left:1.5in;text-align:justify;mso-pagination:none;border:none;
mso-padding-alt:31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes">(a) on appeal against conviction or
sentence the appellate court concurred in the recommendation, or (b) no such
appeal was brought wit</main>