Woyome suffers legal setback…Dealt another major blow

An Accra Fast Track High Court, has struck out a contempt suit filed by Lawyer David Annan against Kennedy Agyapong and three others in connection with the on-going Alfred Agbesi Woyome judgement debt trial.

David Annan, one of the counsel for Woyome, the embattled businessman, financial engineer and a former Deputy Consul of Austria, in the infamous GH¢51.2million judgment debt payout, filed the contempt suit on June 26th against the four for making prejudicial comments on the matter which is before court.

The other respondents were the Chief Executive Officer of Despite Group of Companies, Osei Kwame; Despite Company Ltd as an entity – represented by the General Manager, Kwasi Brenya - and Nana Kwadwo Asante, Editor of Peacefmonline.com.

All three respondents were represented by Carl Adongo of Dery and Co whiles former Attorney-General under the Kufuor administration, Lawyer Ayikwei Otoo, represented the Assin North MP.

He was seeking an order of perpetual injunction restraining Ken Agyapong, also a businessman, from further making any remarks on the case.

David Annan averred that the outspoken Assin North MP told Net2 Television in an interview last year that even if Alfred Woyome dies, he (Agyapong) will ensure that his (Woyome’s) corpse is exhumed and tried in court.

"I have already told you that Woyome would go to jail. No matter the outcome, if it even takes hundred years, he will still go to jail. Even if it happens that he is found dead, we will unearth his remains, bring out his bones...take it court, prosecute it and jail his bones. He has defrauded the nation and so splashes the monies affluently claiming that he is a bank roller,” the NPP MP reportedly said.

Lawyer David Annan claims the comments and pronouncements Ken Agyapong made on the case, and which were later published on peacefmonline and captioned “You’ll Vomit The Monies And If You Happen To Die We’ll Exhume Your Body…And Jail Your Dead Bones – Ken Tells Woyome”, could have an impact on the final determination of a suit filed by another member of Alfred Woyome’s legal team, Chris Ackumey.

Among other reliefs he sought, David Annan argued that the comments could bring the administration of justice into disrepute, and therefore filed the contempt suit against the NPP MP and the three others who he claimed helped in the dissemination of that contemptuous statement.

At an earlier sitting in October, Lawyer David Annan prayed the court to issue a bench warrant for the arrest of the Assin North MP, for failing to appear before it.

He told the court that the NPP MP had a penchant for disregarding suits filed against him and failing to make an appearance in court even when he has been served, and therefore prayed the court to issue a bench warrant for his arrest to serve as a deterrent since the case was of “quasi-criminal” nature.

The court, presided over by His Lordship, Justice Godwin Gabor, upon careful consideration agreed to the plaintiff’s request and asked that a bench warrant be issued for the NPP MPs arrest and he (Ken) be committed to a GHC 20,000 bail bond.

But Mr Ayikwei Otoo, after explaining to the court why his client did not make an appearance on that day, together with Carl Adongo, put forward that the case lacked merit.

After listening to both sides of the legal argument, Justice Gabor, on Wednesday, agreed with the position of the defendants and ruled that the case be struck out. He, however, did not award cost.

Later in an interview with Peacefmonline, Lawyer Carl Adongo, said though his learned colleague had gone to court with a contempt charge, the court’s ruling proved that his (Annan’s) case “had no feet to walk on”.

“…once the court has made its final ruling, I see no good reason why he (Annan) might want to bring up the case again,” he said.