Maurice Ampaw, legal practitioner
Private legal practitioner, lawyer Maurice Ampaw, has admonished President Nana Addo Dankwa-Akufo Addo to act swiftly following the petition sent to him by Indian businessman Ashok Sivram, who has accused the Interior Minister Ambrose Dery of harassing him.
According to the maverick lawyer, the president is aware of the matter hence the need to make a definite statement on it.
Speaking to Rainbow Radio’s Kwame Tutu, lawyer Ampaw argued that what is happening borders on Ghana’s foreign and investment policies.
The situation if not checked will have serious effect on our bilateral relations with Indian as well as scare other investors away from the country.
He admonished the president to take the petition from the Indian national serious and probe the issue further. He also sent a note of caution to the Interior Minister that he is not above the law so should not breach the law but act in circumspect.
‘’The president must intervene because this issue is about our foreign policy and how to manage our relationship with our foreign partners. The president should step in because I believe that he [President] is aware of what his Interior Minister is doing. He should probe the matter and sanction all his appointees who may have been bribed to frustrate the Indian businessman.’’
‘’Interior Minister is not above the law. He should not undermine the ruling of the court…He should respect the orders of the court…What has the other Indian businessman given to the Interior Minister to warrant his action?
Indian businessman whose deportation by the Interior Ministry was quashed by an Accra High Court some few weeks ago has petitioned President Nana Akufo-Addo to call Ambrose Dery, Minister of Interior and the Director of Immigration to order.
In the petition, he accused the Interior Minister, Ambrose Dery, Director/Comptroller of the Immigration Service, Kwame Takyi and Deputy Comptroller General in-charge of Operations, Laud Afrifa of plotting to illegally deport him and take over his company.
Ashok Kumar Sivaram said he is constantly being harassed by officials of the Ghana Immigration Service and he believes his frustrations are part of a grand scheme to transfer his interest in his company, Jai Mai Communications Limited, to his business partner.
Excerpts of the petition read:
“Mr. President, the action of the respondents is a deliberate ploy to render my status in the country without a valid permit in order to easily facilitate my removal from the jurisdiction. This action by the respondents is also a clear attempt to undermine the order for valuation of the company the by high court dated 5th May, 2017. Mr. President, I implore you as the father of the nation to graciously step in to resolve the matters raised in my petition. I shall forever be grateful to you for your prompt action on this matter,” he added in the petition.
An Accra High Court on July 31, 2017 quashed the deportation of Mr. Ashok by Ambrose Derry. According to the court by presided over by Justice Kwaku Ackah Boafo, the Interior Minister exceeded his jurisdiction by determining fraud against the Ashok without recourse to the court.
The court also indicated that the Interior Minister breached the rule of natural justice by not giving the plaintiff a hearing after he had accused him of allegedly committing fraud.
The Interior Minister and the Comptroller General of Immigration are said to have approved the deportation of Mr Sivaram on grounds that he obtained a fake marriage certificate to enable his stay in Ghana; a claim Mr Ashok Kumar Sivaram who had lived in the country for close to a decade rejected.
“Mr. President, whilst the respondents are failing to conduct their statutory work, they keep sending Immigration Officials after me ostensibly to arrest and repatriate me so to lock my huge investments in Ghana in order to aid my business partner to take over my business interest.
Mr. President the respondents are refusing to restore my residence/work permit even though the deportation order based on which my residence/work permit was cancelled by them has been quashed by the High Court in a ruling delivered on 31st July 2017.”
