Justice Dery loses contempt case against MFWA, others

The Special Court presiding over the cases emanating out of the judicial corruption scandal has dismissed the contempt case brought against Starr FM, the Media Foundation and others.

One of the High Court judges implicated in the scandal exposed by journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas, Justice Paul Uuter Dery filed the writ seeking the court to imprison the Chief Executive Officer of EIB Network Nathaniel Kwabena Anokye Adisi, popularly known as Bola Ray, and Anas for contempt of court.

Others joined in the suit were the acting Editor of the New Crusading Guide, Samuel Frimpong; the Deputy Editor of the New Crusading Guide newspaper, Ernest Addo and the Executive Director of the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), Sulemana Braimah.

“Unless and until this honourable court convicts the respondents herein, they will continue to publish prejudicial articles in respect of the said case. In the circumstance, I pray that this obvious disregard to the Court amounts to nothing more than contempt of Court of which the Respondents ought to be convicted and punished,” he prayed the court.

Justice Dery, who was indicted in the bribery scandal which has rocked the Judicial Service of Ghana, including 33 other judges and over 80 staff of the judiciary was seeking to block the video which was shown at the Accra International Conference Centre last week.

He was allegedly caught on camera taking bribe to compromise a case before him.

The court in the ruling today, Tuesday, September 29, said it found the contempt charge frivolous since the applicant had previously withdrawn the initial suit against the showing of the video.