Private Legal Practitioner, Martin Kpebu has described Mr. Alfred Agbesi Woyome’s supposed humanitarian assistance to the disbarred Chief State Attorney, Mr. Samuel Nerquaye Tetteh as illegal and inappropriate when it was done.
He stated that the act of Mr. Woyome is indefensible and against the ethics of the legal practice. He said the General Legal Council found the issue liable because Mr. Woyome’s assistance to Mr. Nerquaye Tetteh was done at a time of the trial in which Mr. Woyome was the defendant and the Chief State Attorney was on the side of the state, the plaintiff.
He indicated that the situation depicts a clear conflict of interest.
“He needn’t have done so. Let’s put it this way, if he was so genuine, it needn’t have come from Mr. Woyome himself, he could have asked a friend to do that. Not when Mr. Nerquaye Tetteh had something to do with the case. There’s no way you can justify it”.
Esq. Martin Kpebu
Esq. Martin Kpebu further suggested that Woyome should not have made any comments on the issue and that his constant remarks serve as a reminder of the embarrassment he caused the state.
He also disclosed that Woyome has not fully paid the judgment debt from his case with the state twelve years ago. He opined that Woyome should be more focused on paying this debt than providing humanitarian assistance to anyone.
Accordingly, Esq. Martin Kpebu emphasized that it is untenable for Mr. Woyome to say that the disbarred Chief State Attorney, Mr. Nerquaye Tetteh was only an assistant to the Attorney General then. He revealed that the office of the Chief State Attorney is high above that of an assistant.
More so, Mr. Martin Kpebu criticized Ghana’s legal system and expressed his opinion that Mr. Woyome should not be a free man since he has not yet made full payment of his judgment debt. He stated that if the legal system in Ghana worked properly, Mr. Woyome would have been in jail.
Woyome To Pay Judgment Debt
According to Mr. Martin Kpebu, the legal profession’s dignity and credibility have been called into question by Mr. Samuel Nerquaye Tetteh’s actions. Mr. Kpebu stated that even if it is for humanitarian reasons, accepting money from a defendant is not a justifiable reason for Mr. Nerquaye Tetteh to humiliate the legal profession, as he did.
Esq. Martin Kpebu further suggested that Mr. Woyome should settle all the judgment debts he owes to the state. He emphasized that it is essential for Mr. Woyome to pay back all the money he owes to the state, even if the state does not demand the payment, as it is the most honorable thing to do.
Mr. Martin Kpebu made these remarks in response to Mr. Alfred Agbesi Woyome’s defense of the disbarred Former Chief State Attorney, Mr. Samuel Nerquaye Tetteh. He maintained that whether the money transferred to Mr. Nerquaye Tetteh’s wife’s account was on humanitarian grounds or not, the transaction was inappropriate.
He indicated that Mr. Nerquaye Tetteh could never clear himself of indictment even if he tried to.
Mr. Alfred Agbesi Woyome however continues to contend that he would not have paid the money directly to the disbarred Mr. Nerquaye Tetteh’s wife if he had meant it to be a bribe.
He asserted that Mr. Nerquaye Tetteh should not be disbarred for accepting money on humanitarian grounds considering his role as ‘just an assistant’ to the Attorney General in the case involving him (Mr. Woyome).
The Ghanaian businessman also revealed that the money that was paid into Mrs. Gifty Nerquaye Tetteh’s account was for her medical expenses as she (Mrs. Nerquaye Tetteh) had some health issues which for her privacy, he cannot disclose.
Conclusively, although Mr. Woyome revealed more details about his case from twelve years ago, the General Legal Council has yet to acknowledge or address any of his arguments.
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