Accra Mayor challenges court ruling

Accra, June 28, GNA - Dr Alfred Okoe Vanderpuije, Accra Metropolitan Chief Executive is challenging the ruling of an Accra Fast Track High Court indicting him for contempt of court.

Dr Vanderpuije contended that the trial judge erred in law when he based his ruling on order 7 Rule 3 (2) of CI 47 when it was inappropriate to do so.

According to the Accra Mayor the trial judge erred in law when he failed to advert his mind to Order 50 Rule 1 (4) of CI 47 and Section 128 of the Local Government Act 1993 (Act 462), which prescribed the procedure for service on him.

He noted that the ruling was against the weight of evidence as such the ruling on June 8, this year should be set aside.

Additionally, he has therefore filed a motion applying for an order of suspension and stay of proceedings and execution of the ruling.

The court's ruling was based on the evidence of a bailiff, Mr Boakye Yiadom Baffour, who said the Mayor had refused to accept service of the applications when he (bailiff) went to the AMA office on June 3, 2011 to direct service.

The motion is expected to be moved on July 6, this year at the Accra Fast Track High Court.

In affidavit in support of the application for stay of proceedings and execution pending an appeal, Dr Vanderpuije said the applicant (Lead Advertising Ghana Limited) filed an application for committal against him.

He said even though Service had never been served on him personally, the bailiff proved that he had served the AMA boss personally on June 3, this year.

This, he noted that the said bailiff testified to that effect. According to him, the said bailiff contended that he served him through his body guard whose name the bailiff could not either mention or get him to sign on the court documents.

The AMA boss noted that the court did not investigate the assertion of the bailiff or asked him or his body guard to respond to the bailiff's evidence.

The court, however, ruled that the purported service was proper and ordered Dr Vanderpuije to respond to the contempt application. Dr Vanderpuije said the grounds of appeal raised critical legal issues, which the Court of Appeal must settle.

In the first contempt application, Dr Vanderpuije and a consultant of the AMA, Mr John Yankah, have been accused of allegedly flouting a court order, which directed them not to pull down billboards belonging to the Advertisers Association of Ghana (AAG) until the final determination of a suit brought against the assembly by the AAG.

In the other application, the two have also been accused of ignoring a motion, which challenged Dr Vanderpuije for contravening the Public Procurement Act (PPA) instituted against him by Lead Advertising (Gh) Limited by directing payment of GH¢177,964.57 to Mr Yankah.

Mr Yankah is accused of accepting payments from the AMA at a time a contract awarded to his company by the AMA was being challenged as legal and contravening the PPA.