Thursday, May 10, 2007

Former First Lady and others case adjourned again

By William Yaw Owusu

Tuesday May 8. 2007
For the second time, the case of former First Lady Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, and four others being tried for their alleged involvement in the divestiture of the Nsawam Cannery could not be heard.

This time around, the case could not proceed because the trial judge, Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie of the Court of Appeal, was said to be indisposed.

On Wedneday March 28, when the case resumed after a long adjournment, it was the new power rationing arrangement that halted proceedings as the Fast Track High Court which is trying the case uses computers to record proceedings

The case could not proceed on that day because the High Street area where the Fast Track High Courts are located were in the morning category which suffered power outage from 6 am to 6 pm.

Mrs Rawlings is being tried together with Emmanuel Amuzu Agbodo, former Executive Secretary of the Divestiture Implementation Committee (DIC), Thomas Benson Owusu, former DIC Accountant, Kwame Peprah, former Finance Minister and DIC chairman, and Hanny Sherry Ayittey, Director of Carridan Development Company Limited (CDCL).

They were originally charged with Georgina Okaitey, a Director, George Mould, a Director and Larry Adjetey, a Director/Secretary, but the Attorney-General withdrew the charges against the three under Section 59 of Act 30 of the Criminal Code.

All the accused persons have been charged with 30 counts of conspiracy, causing financial loss to a public property, intentionally causing loss to a public property, conspiracy to obtain public property by false statement and obtaining public property by fabre statement.

They have pleaded not guilty and have been granted self recognisance bail.

At the court’s premises yesterday it was only Agbodo and Peprah who were sighted.

A court clerk later told this reporter that counsel for the accused persons and the prosecutors from the Attorney General’s Department will meet to agree on a date and communicate it to the court later.

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