ITLOS: Akufo-Addo honours Ghana's legal team

President Nana Akufo-Addo has acknowledged the legal team that represented Ghana in the maritime boundary dispute against neighbouring Côte d’Ivoire at the Special Chamber of the International Tribunal of the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), Germany.

He said the country expresses gratitude to the men and women who were entrusted with the responsibility of making sure that Ghana’s resources especially oil fields were preserved.

ITLOS ruled in favour of Ghana in the three-year-long maritime dispute.

The Chamber in a unanimous decision on Saturday, September 23, 2017, ruled that there had not been any violation on the part of Ghana on Côte d’Ivoire’s maritime boundary.

The Chamber rejected Côte d’Ivoire’s argument that Ghana’s coastal lines were unstable.

Accordingly, the two countries have signed the agreements on the implementation of the ruling by the tribunal.

For Mr Akufo-Addo, it took the “commitment and hardwork” of many to secure a favourable outcome in the court case”.

At a ceremony held at the Flagstaff House on Thursday, October 19, to honour all the members of the team led by Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Gloria Akuffo, Mr Akufo-Addo stated that : “To each and every one of them, we say ‘ayekoo’; Ghana is indebted to you”.

The dispute began during the erstwhile National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration and the then Attorney General and Minister of Justice; Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong was also a partner of Ms Akuffo at the forefront of the legal battle which they eventually managed to secure victory for the country.

Mr Akufo-Addo emphasized in his speech that the victory could not have been achieved “through the actions of one person or one political party but a collective effort”.

For him, successive presidents and governments that preceded the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) “should not be overlooked, discounted or understated on such an occasion” and applauded his predecessors for the foundation laid in the oil sector that enabled the victory that has ensured that the country enjoys the full benefits of its resources located on the western coast line.