Ho court adjourns treason case to April 11

The Ho High Court has adjourned the case of the three members of the secessionist group to April 11, 2017 to allow prosecution to continue and conclude investigations.

The three are members of the Homeland Study Group Foundation (HSGF) who have been demanding the secession of the Volta Region and parts of the Northern and Upper East Regions from Ghana to become the Western Togoland state.

The demand runs contrary to the prevailing international order of globalisation which rather facilitates the integration of states and nations into political and economic blocs.

Related: We are breaking away from Ghana

Last week, the three; Charles Kormi Kudjordjie, Divine Odonkor and Martin Asiana Agbenu were arrested and arraigned before the court on charges of treason and conspiracy to commit treason.

Prosecution statement

A state attorney of the Attorney General’s Department, Mr Moses Asampoa who led the prosecution said their charge was a treason felony and after investigation, may have cause to indict the accused persons to go through indictable process.

He said they were engaged in treason felony which was tantamount to usurping the executive powers of the state.

Mr Asampoa brought to the notice of the court that the accused persons had acted in violation to the orders of the court that they should not do anything in furtherance of the charges levelled against them by wearing T- shirts and asked the court to restrain them from wearing and distributing the T-shirts.

Defence counsel

However, counsel for the accused persons, Mr Eric Atsu Agbakpey argued that it was unconstitutional to bring an accused person to court and tell the court that he was now going to look for evidence and that there was no basis without requisite evidence.

According to him it was against fair trial and abuse of human rights of accused persons adding that the arrest of the suspects and bringing them to court should have been at the last stage of investigations.

He therefore submitted that if prosecution had no evidence to support the charge it should bow out and the court should discharge the accused persons.

The supervising high court judge for the Volta region, His Lordship Justice Charles Agbevor cautioned that the players in the case should not express themselves in any way to fuel the rising tension connected with the case.

He said the T-shirts were not mere T-shirts and that other criminal charges could be levelled against them on the way they expressed themselves with it, adding that, the court cannot ban the T-shirts but if they wear them they did so at their own risk.