Woyome prays for stay of execution

The Supreme Court has adjourned to November 28 a ruling on an application filed by Mr Osafo Boabeng, Counsel for Mr Woyome, for a stay of execution.

Mr Woyome, at the last sitting filed the motion asking the Supreme Court to put on hold, his oral examination and all other processes by the state to retrieve the GHc 51million unlawful judgment debt paid to him.

He wanted the court to suspend hearing until his appeal at the African Court for Justice and Human Rights in Tanzania is determined.

When the case was called on Tuesday afternoon, Mr Boabeng prayed the court to meet the panel in chambers, which the court obliged.

In his oral submission Mr Boabeng said they still relied on their application and referred to article 40 (73) and (75), of the 1992 constitution.

He said the defendants have not yet made any objection, and so they still submit that proceedings in the matter would have a bearing in the case in Arusha Tanzania, and so it should be stayed.

Deputy State Attorney, Mr Godfred Dame, opposed the application, saying the process is an affront to the constitution, and that the Supreme Court is the highest court of appeal and no other court can have such powers over it.

He said the Supreme Court has the sole jurisdiction in any matter and the international tribunal would respect any decision of the highest court of land.

Mr Dame noted that the applicant has also not demonstrated how the enforcement of the court would account to any infringement of his fundamental human rights.

The court at this point adjourned the case to November 28 for its ruling on the application.

Mr Woyome has filed a number of legal proceedings in court, with this application being the seventh since the start of the legal battle to determine his ability to pay the debt owed to the state.

All his legal attempts have proved futile as the court keep dismissing his applications for various reasons.

The court on October 21, dismissed an earlier application filed by Mr Woyome, to halt the valuation of his property by the State as part of efforts to retrieve the money, the court at the time was empaneled by a single judge.

Mr. Woyome is praying the court to put on hold all processes to reclaim the money from him until a determination of another related case being heard at the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

The Attorney -General was expected to continue with the oral examination on how, Woyome intends to re-pay the amount however he was not in court on Monday as his counsel explained that he was unwell.

Ghana News Agency legal news bulletin indicates that previously, the Counsel for Mr Woyome, Mr Osafo Boabeng, had filed an application arguing that the writ of execution that the Attorney General (AG) used for the valuation was illegal.

He argued that the AG failed to seek consent from the apex court to renew the writ of execution and, therefore, any action based on that writ was a nullity.

The court, presided over by, Justice Alfred Anthony Benin, on October 20, dismissed the application saying the AG did nothing wrong because the writ of execution had not expired and was effective.

He said the first writ of execution which was filed on January 9, 2015 was still in effect when the AG filed for another one on January 6, 2016 and, therefore, the issue of renewal did not arise.

The court subsequently, adjourned the matter to October 30, for continuation of the oral examination of Mr Woyome by the AG.

On October 30, Lawyers for Woyome, told the court that he was still ill and was unable to attend court.

Mr Buaben presented yet another excuse duty document to the single Justice handling the case in his chambers to support the request of his client to be given more time to make himself available for his oral examination to continue.