The Kaneshie District Court has adjourned proceedings of the case involving Charles Bissue and the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) to Monday March 11, 2024. This change in schedule is due to the case being under the “jurisdiction of a relieving judge,” as stated by the Office of the Special Prosecutor.
Rescheduling is a standard procedure that can occur in legal proceedings when there are changes in the judicial panel or in other relevant circumstances.
According to the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), on December 6, 2023, Justice Nicholas Abodakpi presided over the court and directed the involved parties in the Charles Bissue Vs Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) case to submit their written arguments by January 15, 2024.
Additionally, the court ordered the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) to cross-examine the lead lawyer for Charles Bissue, Nana Agyei Baffour.
The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) stated that, by January 15, 2024, the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) and the Attorney General complied with the directive to submit their written arguments.
However, Charles Bissue and his legal team did not follow the directive, “citing the lead lawyer’s torn ligament as the reason for non-compliance.”
In addition, the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) affirmed that Nana Agyei Baffour, the lawyer for Charles Bissue, submitted an affidavit in June 2023, alleging that the Special Prosecutor (OSP) had obtained an unlawful arrest warrant for his client.
“Despite efforts, Nana Agyei Baffour, the lawyer, was unable to persuade the court to rescind its order for him to undergo cross-examination by the OSP.”
Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP)
However, the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) established that subsequent investigations revealed no record of such a warrant, making the claim false.
Charges Against Charles Bissue, the Former IMCIM Secretary
The case involved Charles Bissue, a former Secretary to the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM), includes charges of corruption and abuse of office related to his activities and expenditure with the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM).
The OSP is accused of misleading the court regarding the existence of an arrest warrant, which led to the granting of an interim injunction restraining the anti-graft agency from arresting and investigating Charles Bissue.
Based on these erroneous assertions, the court had previously issued an injunction preventing the Office of the Special Prosecutor from arresting Charles Bissue for ten days.
This injunction was issued in response to Baffour’s affidavit, which the court found baseless due to the lack of evidence supporting the existence of the warrant.
Charles Bissue’s legal team filed a Written Submission on his behalf on January 31, 2024, and the Office of the Special Prosecutor’s Written Submission has been served on them.
The former secretary asked for several reliefs from the Human Rights Court, including quashing the arrest warrant issued against him and compelling the Office of the Special Prosecutor to comply with certain provisions.
“Compel the 1st Respondent to comply with the provisions of L.I. 2374 by providing the Applicant with a copy of the Petitions, forming the basis of the investigations being conducted by the 1st Respondent in respect of which the Applicant is deemed to be a necessary person”.
Nana Agyei Baffour
Charles Bissue is also seeking an injunction to prevent the OSP from investigating him, contending that the subject of the probe has already been investigated by the Criminal Investigation Division of the Ghana Police Service. His lawyer argued that any further investigation and prosecution would require a review of police investigations and findings.
The case was under the jurisdiction of Justice Nicholas Abodakpi, who has since retired, and a new judge is yet to be assigned.
Charles Bissue is concurrently vying for the position of Member of Parliament under the New Patriotic Party (NPP) ticket to represent the people of Essikado-Ketan.
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