Godfred Yeboah Dame, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, spoke with Ghanaians living in the United Kingdom (UK) at a town hall meeting. He discussed a few issues regarding the claim that he has misbehaved in connection with the ambulance trial involving businessman Richard Jakpa and Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, the current Minority Leader in Parliament.
Godfred Dame was under fire from the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for allegedly breaking rules of legal practice. The NDC had asked that Dame resign or be fired.
The Attorney-General allegedly broke Section 315 of the Criminal Offences Act, the Legal Profession (Professional Conduct and Etiquette) Rules, 2020, and Legislative Instrument (L.I.) 2423. As a result, the NDC, the main opposition political party, wanted the Attorney General to face charges.
During a press conference in Accra, Johnson Asiedu Nketia, the National Chairman of the NDC, for example, issued a warning, saying that if the president did not act, the next NDC administration will.
However, the Accra High Court, where the linked ambulance case is being tried, rejected those charges, stating that the General Legal Council was the proper forum for the matter.
The judge observed that Dame had spoken with Jakpa about the specifics of the case and urged him to provide a medical justification in order to allow for an adjournment.
The judge made it clear that there was insufficient evidence to stop the prosecutions based only on one encounter. To protect the credibility of the court, Justice Afia Serwah Asare-Botwe recommended Dame to refrain from direct prosecution.
However, Mr. Dame retorted that the judge’s recommendation was only a suggestion and not an official order.
Source: Graphic online