OSP heads to Supreme Court over High Court ruling in Cecilia Dapaah’s case

The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has filed a certiorari at the Supreme Court seeking to annul a High Court judgment that sanctioned an expedited hearing for the confiscation of a former minister's assets and the freezing of her bank accounts.

Consequently, they have also submitted an application at the High Court to suspend proceedings until the Supreme Court reaches a final decision, Graphic.gh.com reports

Dr. Isidore Tuffuor, representing the OSP in court on October 18, informed the court about the recent application.

Background:

Justice Edward Twum presided over the High Court, which was supposed to hear Ms. Dapaah's plea on October 12.

The OSP had charged her with failing to declare her assets during her tenure as a minister.

Furthermore, the court was expected to consider a second attempt by the OSP to freeze Ms. Dapaah's assets and accounts on the same day.

However, the OSP urged the Chief Justice to disqualify Justice Twum from all their cases, including the one concerning the former minister.

On October 18, when the case was called, Justice Twum informed Victoria Barth, Ms. Dapaah's lawyer, that he had been notified of the OSP's withdrawal of the petition.

However, shortly after, Justice Twum retreated to his chamber, only to later announce that the petition was still pending.

Ms. Dapaah's legal team suggested that the OSP's recent applications were part of a premeditated plan to evade the hearing of their own application, causing harm to the respondent and infringing upon her economic rights.

Barth stated, "It is important to note the clearly orchestrated plan by the applicant to delay or flee the hearing of his own application, which is causing injury to the respondent and infringing upon the first respondent’s economic right."

In response, Dr. Tuffuor countered these claims, describing the remarks by Ms. Dapaah's lawyers as an attack on the integrity and person of the Special Prosecutor.

Justice Twum has postponed the matter to October 25 of this year for the motion for a stay of proceedings to be considered.

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