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Ato Forson And Richard Jakpa Acquitted In Ambulance Case By Court Of Appeal
Politics

Ato Forson And Richard Jakpa Acquitted In Ambulance Case By Court Of Appeal

by  Delali Adogla-Bessa 2 min read
  • The Court of Appeal has acquitted minority leader Cassiel Ato Forson in the ongoing ambulance case
  • A panel of judges said that the earlier ruling on dismissing Forson's challenge of the case was erroneous
  • The case concerns a government deal to buy 200 ambulances when Forson was deputy finance minister

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The Court of Appeal has acquitted and discharged minority leader, Cassiel Ato Forson, in the ongoing ambulance case.

Embattled businessman Richard Jakpa has also been acquitted in the case.

Ato Forson And Richard Jakpa Acquitted In Ambulance Case By Court Of Appeal
Minority Leader Cassiel Ato Forson was serving as deputy finance minister when the ambulances were procured. Source: Parliament of Ghana
Source: Facebook

The Court of Appeal set aside the order for Forson to open his defence in the case.

The Director of Legal Affairs of the National Democratic Congress, Edudzi Tamekloe, told Citi News the appeal was filed after the trial court dismissed their submission of no case in March.

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Read also

Attorney General announces decision to challenge acquittal of Ato Forson in ambulance case

A panel of three judges in a 2-1 majority decision said the earlier ruling on the submission was an error.

Reacting to the ruling, Forson cited Romans 9:14 in a victory post on Facebook.

“What, then, shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all!”

Forson had been accused of causing the state financial loss of €2.37 million.

The case concerns a government deal to purchase 200 ambulances between 2014 and 2016 when Forson was the deputy finance minister.

Concerns about political persecution

Meanwhile, Alban Bagbin, the Speaker of Parliament, has expressed concern about the prosecution of Forson.

Per GhanaWeb, Bagbin described the court case as a persecution of the minority leader and a 'political gamble' by the government.

After Forson was acquitted, the NDC General Secretary, Fifi Kwettey, praised the decision in a Facebook post.

"Today, the Court of Appeal has acquitted and discharged Ato Forson, the Minority Leader, exposing yet another shameless attempt by Attorney General Godfred Odame and the NPP government to weaponize the judiciary against dissent."

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Secret recording of Attorney General released

YEN.com.gh also reported that a secret recording was released suggesting that Attorney General Godfred Dame tried to turn witness against Forson in the ambulance case.

The controversy began when Jakpa testified in court that he had been pressured to provide testimony detrimental to Forson, claming the attorney-general was calling him at odd hours.

The recording is said to have captured a conversation between Dame and Jakpa, in which he purportedly coached the businessman on the statements against Forson to make in court.

Proofread by Bruce Douglas, senior copy editor at YEN.com.gh

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Source: YEN.com.gh

Authors:
Delali Adogla-Bessa avatar

Delali Adogla-Bessa (Current Affairs Editor) Delali Adogla-Bessa is a Current Affairs Editor with YEN.com.gh. Delali previously worked as a freelance journalist in Ghana and has over seven years of experience in media, primarily with Citi FM, Equal Times, Ubuntu Times. Delali also volunteers with the Ghana Institute of Language Literacy and Bible Translation, where he documents efforts to preserve local languages. He graduated from the University of Ghana in 2014 with a BA in Information Studies. Email: delali.adogla-bessa@yen.com.gh.

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