Kusi Boateng’s contempt case suffers at Court of Appeal; ordered to pay GHc3k

The Court of Appeal has dismissed a contempt case by  Rev. Victor Kusi Boateng against the Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.

The appellant, who is the Secretary to the Board of Trustees of the National Cathedral was thus ordered to pay GHc3,000 as cost.

This is the third time, such a move by the appellant has hit a snag; two failed attempts at the High Court and the current one.

The panel, presided over by the Judicial Secretary Justice Cynthia Pamela A. Koranteng, held that the grounds of appeal did not comply with the rules of the court.

Again, the panel, which consisted of Justice Afia Serwah Asare-Botwe and Justice Kweku Tawiah Ackaah-Boafo described the grounds of appeal as  “incompetent” and duly struck it out

Objection to panel Reconstitution

Prior to the hearing of the appeal, counsel for the respondent, Thaddeus Sory, objected to the recomposition of the panel by the Chief Justice.

He challenged the replacement of Justice Senyo Dzamefe with the Judicial Secretary as president of the panel arguing that the move is unconstitutional and thus will undermine fair hearing.

This was opposed by Bobby Benson, the lawyer for Rev. Kusi Boateng, who described the allegation of bias as not grounded in law.

In the ruling read by  Justice Kweku Tawiah Ackaah-Boafo, the appellate court held that no acceptable evidence had been brought to support the allegations of bias against the Chief Justice when choosing the panel and thus overruled the same.