An Accra circuit tribunal on Tuesday adjourned to February 26 a case involving Tsatsu Tsikata, former Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), charged with causing financial loss to the state through carelessness.
The tribunal chaired by Mr Imoru Ziblim granted the adjournment at the request of the defence counsel after it realised that prosecution was absent. At the last sitting on January 8, the court granted the prosecution three weeks to conduct further investigations into the case. The three-week period elapsed on Tuesday January 29.
When sitting resumed on Tuesday, the defence counsel, citing the absence of the prosecution, prayed the tribunal to grant four more weeks' adjournment by which prosecution might be ready. Tsikata, a lawyer, is facing charges of causing financial loss of about 2.2 billion cedis to the state, following forensic auditing of the GNPC.
He pleaded not guilty and is on 500 million cedis self-recognisance bail. Earlier, the tribunal was told that a forensic audit ordered by the government found that Tsikata had circumvented laid down corporate objectives of the GNPC.
He allegedly by-passed the Board of Directors of the Corporation and committed GNPC to guarantee a loan of 5.5 million French francs and another 1.4 million French francs with interest inclusive to Valley Farm, a private cocoa growing company of which GNPC held an initial share of 17.39 per cent.
The loan, totalling about 2.2 billion cedis was from the Caisse Francaise de Developpement, a French aid agency. Valley Farm was said to have used the loan to rehabilitate three cocoa farms located at Assin Manso in the Central Region, Dadieso and Nyakoman in the Western Region.
The Prosecution said Valley Farm went distressed and defaulted in repaying the loan, compelling Tsikata, without prior approval of the Board of Directors, to pay the loan as well as interest totalling 6,919,123 French francs out of GNPC funds.
