Court dismisses Tsikata's bail

Accra, July 30, GNA - An Accra Fast Track High Court (FTHC) on Tuesday dismissed the bail application of Tsatsu Tsikata, former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), because the accused failed to move the application.

Mrs. Justice Henrietta Abban, the judge who jailed Tsikata for five years for wilfully causing financial loss and misapplication of public property, was expected to give another ruling on whether she had to disqualify herself from sitting on a bail application of the convict. Mr Tsikata in an earlier appearance had notified the court about the issue of bias against Mrs Justice Abban.


However, Mrs Abban in her ruling maintained that the Court had the jurisdiction to sit on the case.


She said the claim by the accused that the trial judge was biased could not be substantiated because for the past six years the accused had been given fair trial and idle gossip from somebody could not be a measure of judicial independence.


Mrs Abban said the claim by the accused that the trial judge should be disqualified from sitting on the bail application could not be supported.


She said the trial judge did not have any interest in the matter because the judgment had already been given and what was before the court was just a bail application.

Mrs. Justice Abban also contended that the allegation that the trial judge was prejudiced about the issue was not true. She said the question before her was whether a reasonable and fair minded person presented with the facts of the case could come to the conclusion that the judge was biased.


However, Mr Tsikata said he could not understand the ruling of the judge.


He said he thought the judge was going to rule on whether or not to disqualify herself from sitting the on the bail application and not to just dismiss the motion.


Mr Tsikata also argued that he could not move his bail application because since June 18 when he was convicted he had not received a copy of the judgment.


Mr Tsikata, former boss of GNPC, was sentenced to five years' imprisonment for wilfully causing financial loss to the State and misapplying public property.

He was found guilty on three counts of causing financial loss to the State and one count of misapplying public property and jailed for five years on each count. The sentences will run concurrently. Tsikata was charged with three counts of wilfully causing financial loss of GH¢230,000 to the State through a loan he, on behalf of GNPC, guaranteed for Valley Farms, a private company, and another count of misapplying public property.


He is said to have intentionally misapplied GH¢2,000 to acquire shares in Valley Farms.


Valley Farm contracted the loan from Caisse Centrale, now Agence Fran=E7aise de D=E9veloppement (ADF), but defaulted in the payment, compelling GNPC as the guarantors, to pay the loan in 1996.