Lawyers for Minority Leader, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson have insisted that their client did not issue Letters of Credit or authorized same in the ongoing ambulance case at the court.
According to them, that particular charge is baseless and should be dismissed. The lawyers in their legal submissions to the court, argued that the prosecution has failed to adduce sufficient evidence to back this charge. They have thus asked the court, to acquit and discharge their client.
“We submit that, to the extent that the evidence on record does not support but contradict these material allegations in the particulars of offenses for Counts 1 and 5, the prosecution has failed to adduce sufficient evidence on key ingredients of the offenses in Counts 1 and 5. Consequently, A1 must be acquitted and discharged.”
“Contrary to the assertions in the particulars of offense of Counts 1 and 5 that AI ‘authorized’ or ‘caused’ irrevocable letters of credit to be established, it is clear from the evidence on record that AI never ‘authorized’ or ‘caused irrevocable’ letters of credit to be established nor did AI act in any manner without due cause and authorization.”
Lawyers of Minority Leader
The Lawyers further deduced and argued in their detailed submissions to the court that “Exhibits A and B1, which bear the signature of AI were transmitted to the Bank of Ghana under the authority of and on behalf of the Minister of Finance as confirmed by Exhibit 5 for A1”
They also stated that the prosecution of Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, is an abuse of prosecutorial powers by the state. According to them, the state was acting like a Leviathan, who has no regard for the rights and liberties of its citizens.
“We maintain that, in a reasoned decision, a court has a duty to clearly set out the legal principles and the evidence upon which the decision is based.
“In addition, an adversarial system like ours, where the role of the court is primarily that of an umpire, places an additional duty on the Court to explain why it prefers one piece of evidence or argument to the other after carefully weighing the evidence relied on by the prosecution and the defense”.
Lawyers of Minority Leader
Our Client Acted On Terkper’s Authorization
Lawyers for Minority Leader, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, have refuted claims by the prosecution that their client as Deputy Finance Minister, authorized the establishment of letters of credit for the purchase of some ambulances.
The former Deputy Finance Minister and two others are on trial for counts of causing financial loss to the state over the importation of 30 ambulances. These were part of a contract between the Ministry of Health and Dubai-based firm; Big Sea Limited, in 2012 for the purchase of 200 ambulances.
The prosecution presented its last witness who was an investigator with the Economic and Organized Crime Office. The lawyers of the accused during cross-examination however, pushed the view that Dr. Ato Forson acted only on behalf of former Finance Minister Seth Terkper.
But the witness insisted investigations revealed that the NDC legislator, acted without authorization from Seth Terkper. According to the AG, “the evidence given orally by the prosecution’s witnesses, was buttressed by a large volume of documents directly confirming the truth of assertions made by the witnesses.”
The AG pointed out that the actions of the first accused, Dr. Ato Forson, directly led to financial loss to the State in the purchase of the vehicles purporting to be ambulances.
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