Selormey's Appeal Fails

The court of Appeal in a 2:1 majority decision dismissed Victor Selormey's appeal yesterday noting that the trial judge favoured Selormey by recalling him to tender evidence

"It was in the interest of justice to permit Selormey to tender the document".

The court presided over by Justice Kwame Afreh in his ruling said that the judge has a discretionary power to recall witness to tender exhibits in evidence.

He, therefore, said that the trial judge, Justice Sam Baddoo did not err in law when he ruled that Selormey who had given his evidence already could be recalled to tender the CD-ROM and the contract agreement. Justices Kwame Afreh and Omari Sasu dismissed the appeal while Justice Sulley Gbadegbe dissented.

The court ruled that the trial judge acted within his rights when he ruled that the documents and CD-ROM could only be tendered by somebody who has a personal knowledge of the document.

Selormey, dissatisfied with Justice Sam Baddoo's ruling, filed an interlocutory appeal against his ruling.

The grounds of the appeal was that the judge had erred by not allowing Inspector Sam Awotwi to tender in attachments of documents including the contract after the court had admitted the covering letter.

Counsel for Selormey had also contended that the CD-ROM should have been admitted in evidence and demonstrated by witness who came to tender it.

On the question of not marking the exhibit as reject, canvassed by Mr. Quarshie-Idun to say that the trial judge erred, the Court of Appeal expressed different opinion saying that the judge did not reject the exhibit but rather it were witnesses who were not qualified to tender the exhibit.

The fact that the documents were mentioned does not mean that they were tendered as reject.

The court further contended that the trial judge had to adjourn the case with the tacit agreement that the defence team was going to call Dr. Fredua Boadu to tender the exhibit but he failed to appear before the court.

The court, therefore, told Selormey to go back to the High Court.