By Yvonne Asare Ofei.
A Court of Appeal Judge sitting with additional responsibility as a High Court judge, Justice Eric Kyei Baffour has ordered a former Chief Executive Officer of Capital Bank William Ato Essien to open his defence after failing to conclude negotiations with the State to pay compensation.
Chief State Attorney Mariana Appiah Opare told the Court that though negotiations have started, they are not yet done. She said they are yet to receive a formal proposal from the accused persons. Madam Appiah explained that the letter is yet to be formally received by the AG before formal discussions will be held with the defence counsel and his team on these latest proposals. She agreed with the court to proceed with the case irrespective of where they have reached.
Counsel for Ato Essien, Baffour Gyau also told the court that, they sent a proposal to the prosecution which was totally rejected and same communicated to them. He explained that in June 2020, the prosecution rejected an earlier proposal that had been sent for consideration.
According to him, the prosecution made a counter-proposal to their earlier proposal. In view of this, they are sure it cannot be refused at this point in time. He also told the court that, they sent the proposal through WhatsApp yesterday and he is following it up with a formal letter bearing in mind the essence of time. He pleaded with the Court to bear with them for the last time in order for them to solidify what they had agreed upon. In response, the Chief State Attorney pointed out that the accused person’s proposal is in relation to the GHC 7.5 million and nothing had so far been made to the other charges.
She stressed that even if the prosecution accepted their proposal, the first accused person will still have to answer other charges. The Commercial Division of the Accra High Court presided over by Justice Eric Kyei Baffour in his ruling noted the attempt by the first accused person to take advantage of Section 35 of the Courts Act 459 of 1993.
He said he has noted in particular the prayer of the first accused person to be afforded more time to conclude negotiations and a further date for him to open his defence. The court has no hesitation at all in granting the prayer for more time for the parties to continue their negotiations. Justice Kyei Baffour said the court is unstable to accede to the prayer to defer the opening of the Defence of the first accused for a number of reasons such as the negotiations for which the parties are engaged in does not cover the whole of the charges for which the first accused has been invited by the Court to open his defence, and even in the likely event of a successful negotiations, the accused may still have to open his defence in respect of the r 20 charges. He explained that It will therefore do the court no credit in the proper management of the trial to adjourn proceedings to abide by conclusion of a negotiation for which the parties may invariable come to the Court for the first accused person to open his defence.
The question will be, and I quote “what then will have been the purpose in holding the trial in abeyance when an accused person is entitled to a trial within a reasonable trial as a constitutional rights quarantined in the constitution”.
He said he has observed with dismay how Defence Lawyers who are supposed to defend the rights of accused persons are interested in violating this constitutional rights of their own clients to be tried within a reasonable time. The court must uphold the rights of all parties and if the defence is not interested, he cannot waive this constitutional rights.