Tsatsu's Case: Fast Track Court Slows Down

An Accra Fast Track Court trying Tsatsu Tsikata, former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) for causing financial loss to the State during his tenure, took a long adjournment on Tuesday. This followed a Notice of Appeal filed on his behalf by his counsel, against the Court of Appeal's ruling of November 27.

When the case was called, Professor Emmanuel Victor Oware Dankwa, Counsel for Tsikata, drew the Court's attention to the Notice of Appeal he had filed against the judgment delivered by the Court of Appeal.

Consequently, the trial judge, Mrs Justice Henrietta Abban said she was adjourning the substantive case to January 14, 2004, pending the final determination of Counsel's application.

In his Notice of Appeal, Prof Dankwa complained of the decision by the Court of Appeal, saying that it erred in law when it used a repealed law as the basis for its failure to enforce Article 19 (5) of the Constitution, when the charges against his client were not brought under the law.

When the case came up for hearing at the Court of Appeal on November 27, the Court presided over by Mr Justice Michael Lartey, upheld the Fast Track Court's decision of March 28 which over-ruled a submission of ‘no case’ brought before it by Tsikata's counsel.

Dismissing the application, the Court of Appeal described Tsikata's 18 grounds of appeal as unmeritorious, vexatious and frivolous, and maintained that since the prosecution had established a prima facie case against him, it was tenable in law for the trial court to order Tsikata to open his defence.

It maintained that in law, the Fast Track Court was not duty-bound to give reasons for its ruling, and therefore upheld its decision and asked Tsikata to go back for his trial to continue at the FTC.

But Prof Dankwa submitted further that the Court of Appeal erred in holding that the failure of the trial judge to assign reasons for her decision was legitimate, and failing to appreciate that neither on the charge sheet nor the evidence before the trial court was there any showing whatever of financial loss being incurred by the State.

Tsikata is facing four counts of willfully causing financial loss to the tune of 2.3 billion cedis to the State during his tenure of office, and intentionally misapplying public property.

He allegedly circumvented laid down procedures of the GNPC Board and illegally guaranteed a loan of 5.5 million French Francs from Caisse Francaisse de Development, a French company, to a limited liability company called Valley Farms.

When Valley Farms defaulted in re-paying the loan, GNPC being the guarantor was forced to refund the amount, and Tsikata used funds from the Corporation's coffers to settle the debt.

Tsikata had pleaded not guilty to all the charges, and had been granted a 700 million-cedi recognisance bail by the FTC.