High Court to hear Quayson’s review motion today
The High Court hearing the perjury and forgery case against James Gyakye Quayson will today determine a motion seeking to vary its decision to hear the case on a daily basis.
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In court yesterday, lawyer for Quayson, Tsatsu Tsikata, had notified the court about the motion.
However, a Deputy Attorney-General, Alfred Tuah-Yeboah, told the court that his office had not received the motion and would need up to today to peruse the document and respond to it.
He, therefore, prayed the Court to allow lawyers for the accused person to continue the cross-examination of the first prosecution witness in the matter as agreed by the court.
Mr Tsikata, who did not agree with the Deputy A-G, said the matters raised in the motion for variation preceded the proceedings, hence continuing with the trial would be an injustice to his client.
The Court, presided over by Justice Mary Maame Ekue Yanzuh, adjourned the case to today, June 21, to enable the A-G to respond to the matter for a ruling to be delivered.
Dozens of sympathisers of the accused person were seen picketing the forecourt of the High Court.
Present in court were some bigwigs of the (National Democratic Congress NDC) including a former Attorney-General, Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong, Member of Parliament (MP) for North-Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa; MP for Buem, Kofi Adams, and Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, the 2020 running mate of former President John Dramani Mahama, among others.
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Trial
Quayson, who is facing charges of forgery and perjury concerning certain alleged offences in the run-up to the 2020 Assin North parliamentary election, is contesting the by-election in the constituency on the ticket of the NDC.
On June 16, 2023, the court ruled that it would hear the case on a daily basis.
That was after the court had turned down a prayer by Quayson’s lawyer, which sought to have the trial continued after the Assin North by-election slated for June 27, 2023, to enable Quayson to concentrate on activities leading to the by-election.
The prayer followed an oral application made by the Attorney-General, Godfred Yeboah Dame, to hear the case on a daily basis.
But lawyers for Quayson filed the motion for the court to review its decision to hear the case on a daily basis.
Motion
Details of the motion, which would be moved today, indicate that on the day the A-G orally applied for the Court to hear the case on a day-to-day basis, he made certain comments which they described as insulting and prejudicial.
In their affidavit in support of the motion, Quayson’s lawyers said they were working on a further process in a bid to file a review application of the Supreme Court’s decision which barred Quayson from holding himself as an MP.
In addition, the lawyers argued that the dates set by the High Court for hearing the trial would clash with the dates set by the Supreme Court in respect of the review processes.
The lawyers added that on the day the High Court ruled in favour of the Attorney-General to hear the case on a daily basis, they were not given the opportunity to draw the High Court’s attention to the dates set by the Supreme Court.
The lawyers further argued in the motion that the case at the Supreme Court required more attention, hence they needed to vary the order
Writer’s mail: justice.agbenorsi@graphic.com.gh.
