Pertaining the ongoing ambulance procurement trial, a former lawmaker for Tamale Central, Inusah Abdulai Bistav Fuseini, has described the conduct of the Attorney-General (A-G), Godfred Yeboah Dame, as a scandal to the State.
He says Godfred Dame’s engagement with the third accused, Richard Jakpa, to get him falsify his witness against Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, the first accused, goes beyond an embarrassment as Martin Kpebu had earlier put it.
The former lawmaker’s comment come on the back of a statement made by private legal practitioner, Martin Luther Kpebu, on the KeyPoints on TV3 Saturday, June 22, 2024, that what the A-G did was an embarrassment to the state.
But to Mr. Fuseini, to say Ghana has been embarrassed for Godfred Dame’s act was an understatement. He bemoaned the A-G’s adoption of what he described as the “prosecution of old”, which he says make prosecutors do all they can to secure evidence to put innocent people behind bars.
Speaking on the same show, the ex Tamale Central lawmaker questioned the stake of the state in prosecuting the matter in question.
“Everybody is now asking whether indeed the state was prosecuting in the interest of justice, in public interest. The conduct of the Attorney- General, in fact it is an understatement to say that the country has been embarrassed, the country has been scandalised. We are scandalised because Attorney-General’s conduct has gone to show that the prosecution of old is still with us. That prosecutors will do everything to procure the evidence to convince. That prosecutors in f they are not checked by the courts will put innocent people in prison,” he intimated.
The comments follow the admission of a full WhatsApp conversation between the A-G and the third accused into evidence by the court, which the former legislator thinks is a scandal to the state.
Background
An Accra High Court admitted into evidence, the full WhatsApp messages between Richard Jakpa, the third accused in the ongoing ambulance procurement trial and the Attorney-General, Godfred Yeboah Dame. Richard Jakpa had earlier presented portions of the conversation to the court which was admitted.
However, the prosecution submitted the full chat which was accepted by the presiding judge, Justice Afia Serwah Asare-Botwe, indicating the court cannot reject the full chat since it had earlier accepted portions of it which were presented by the third defendant, Richard Jakpa.
She, however, stated that the weight of the evidence presented could only be determined by the court.
Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Yvonne Atakora Obuobisa, during proceedings on Tuesday, June 18, 2024, shed light on the significant number of messages the third accused sent in contrast to the few ones Mr. Dame responded to.
Mr. Jakpa admitted that he introduced himself to the Attorney-General before the trial and obtained the Justice Minister’s contact information through his cousin, Supreme Court Judge, Justice Yonny Kulendi.
Under cross-examination, he acknowledged that the messages presented in court did not represent the entire conversation but were selectively chosen for their relevance to his case.
Meanwhile, counsel for the defence, Thaddeus Sory, objected to the full conversation saying they would need more to review the messages thoroughly.
The court had earlier admitted into evidence, a tape containing a telephone conversation between the A-G and Mr. Jakpa, where Mr. Dame is accused of impressing upon Jakpa to falsify his testimony against the first accused, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson
