REPUBLIC vs. HIGH COURT (CRIMINAL DIVISION 1), ACCRA EXPARTE: STEPHEN KWABENA OPUNI , ATTORNEY-GENERAL [2021]DLSC10770

REPUBLIC vs. HIGH COURT (CRIMINAL DIVISION 1), ACCRA EXPARTE: STEPHEN KWABENA OP... [2021]DLSC10770

Date	2021-07-28
Suit No.	CIVIL MOTION NO. J5/58/2021
Citation No.	[2021]DLSC10770

DOTSE JSC (PRESIDING)

PWAMANG

JSC

DORDZIE (MRS.) JSC

LOVELACE-JOHNSON (MS.) JSC

AMADU JSC

SAMUEL CODJOE FOR THE APPLICANT WITH HIM ERIC ATIEKU.

ALFRED TUAH-YEBOAH (DEPUTY ATTORNEY-GENERAL) FOR INTERESTED PARTY WITH HIM MRS. YVONNE ATAKORA OBUOBISA (DIRECTOR PUBLIC PROSECUTOR).

[2021]DLSC10770
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >REPUBLIC<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>HIGH
COURT (CRIMINAL DIVISION 1), ACCRA<o:p></o:p>(RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>EXPARTE:
STEPHEN KWABENA OPUNI<o:p></o:p>(APPLICANT)<o:p></o:p>ATTORNEY-GENERAL<o:p></o:p>(INTERESTED PARTY)<o:p></o:p>[SUPREME
COURT, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p><div style="border-top: none; border-right: none; border-left: none; border-image: initial; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; padding: 0cm 0cm 1pt;">

<p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0cm;margin-bottom:
.0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:center;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:
solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">CIVIL MOTION NO. J5/58/2021 &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;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;DATE:
28TH JULY, 2021<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>SAMUEL CODJOE FOR
THE APPLICANT WITH HIM ERIC ATIEKU.<o:p></o:p><div style="border-top: none; border-right: none; border-left: none; border-image: initial; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; padding: 0cm 0cm 1pt;">

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:150%;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">ALFRED
TUAH-YEBOAH, (DEPUTY ATTORNEY-GENERAL), FOR INTERESTED PARTY WITH HIM MRS. YVONNE
ATAKORA OBUOBISA (DIRECTOR PUBLIC PROSECUTOR).<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>DOTSE JSC (PRESIDING), PWAMANG, JSC, DORDZIE
(MRS.) JSC, LOVELACE-JOHNSON (MS.) JSC, AMADU JSC <o:p></o:p><div style="border-top-width: 1.5pt; border-top-color: windowtext; border-left: none; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; border-right: none; padding: 1pt 0cm;">

<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center;border:none;
mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:1.0pt 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">RULING<o:p></o:p>

</div>MAJORITY
OPINION<o:p></o:p>PWAMANG
JSC:-<o:p></o:p>My Lords, the applicant before us prays the court
to exercise our supervisory jurisdiction and quash by an order of Certiorari,
“part of the ruling of the said High Court (Criminal Division 1), Accra dated 7th
day of May, 2021 which rejected exhibits 58, 59, 60…74 and 75 from the evidence
and for an order of Prohibition to prohibit His Lordship Justice Clemence
Jackson Honyenuga (JSC) sitting as an additional High Court Judge from
continuing with Case No. CR/158/2018- Republic v Stephen Kwabena Opuni, Seidu
Agong, Agricult Ghana Limited.” As grounds for the application, the applicant
pleads grievous error of law, breach of the right to be heard and real
likelihood of bias.<o:p></o:p>The brief background to the application is this.
At the criminal trial pending in the High Court, Accra, the applicant who used
to be the Chief Executive Officer of&nbsp;
Cocobod has been charged together with two others on various counts
including&nbsp;&nbsp; abetment of defrauding by
false pretences and willfully causing financial loss to the state of Ghana in
relation to the procurement and supply of&nbsp;
Lithovit Foliar Fertilizer from Germany. The fertilizer was for
application by farmers on cocoa so as to increase the country’s cocoa output.
At the close of the case of the prosecution, the applicant made a submission of
no case to answer and in his ruling dismissing that application the trial judge
made the impugned orders and findings. Part of the case made by the prosecution
against the Accused persons, as captured by the trial judge at pages 17 to 21
of his 89-page ruling, which is Exhibit “EXH OP3” in these present proceeding,
was as follows;<o:p></o:p>“Investigations
have revealed that on assumption of office, Stephen Kwabena Opuni 1st
Accused person as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of COCOBOD, directed, contrary
to established policy and practice that the period for testing should be
shortened. Additionally, upon the direction of the 1st Accused
person no field or laboratory tests were conducted for renewal of certificates
for the use of Lithovit Foliar Fertilizer on cocoa during his tenure in
office……On the 19th February 2014, the 1st Accused person
applied to the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) for approval for the 3rd
Accused company to be singled sourced to procure 700,000 litres of “Lithovit
Fertilizer ‘although conditions for single source procurement had not been
satisfied.’…..In the course of investigations, tests conducted revealed
variously that the “Lithovit” supplied by the 2nd and 3rd
accused to COCOBOD had been adulterated and did not meet the specified standard
and that the product could not be used as foliar nutrient on cocoa.
Furthermore, the tests indicated that the “Lithovit” which was tested could be
harmful to humans and animals as well as hazardous to water and that the amount
of Lithovit found in the sample was insignificant and could compromise the
outcome of its application on cocoa. Even though COCOBOD had spent (sic) a sum
of $65,200,000 (GHC217, 345,289.20) on Purchase of “Lithovit Liquid
Fertilizer”, COCBOD’s records show that there was not significant increase in
cocoa yield within the period.”<o:p></o:p>The prosecution tendered various document as proof
of these serious allegations made against the Accused persons including letters
written by the 1st Accused person, minutes of meetings of the Entity
Tender Committee of Cocobod, reports by the Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana
(CRIG) on the quality of the fertilizer and police witness statements made by
some cocoa farmers to the effect that they did not experience increase in their
cocoa yield after applying the fertilizer. In cross-examining the police
investigator of the case who testified as PW7, the lawyer of the accused person
challenged the correctness of the allegations contained in the passages I have
quoted above and tendered through him, without objection by the Att</main>