No Docket On Kennedy Agyepong
Mrs. Merley Wood, a principal state attorney in the trial of Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin North, accused of inciting tribal hatred, yesterday stated that the prosecuting team did not have the docket on the MP.
Ms Wood told an Accra High Court hearing charges of attempted treason, genocide and terrorism against the MP that the state was in court 'for a date because we have still not received the docket for advice'.
The state attorney and her senior, Rexford Wiredu, told the court presided over by Justice Charles Quist that they wanted a two-week adjournment to enable them to appear before him for the matter to be heard.
Nii Ayikoi Otoo, lead counsel for the MP, expressed surprise at the turn of events and said the facts sheet at the last hearing signed by Mr. Wiredu was based on the prosecution's facts of the case and wondered whether the state was going to introduce another set of facts of the case.
The state attorney told the judge after the MP was granted bail that he was not ordered to report to the police once in a while so the police had a hard time looking for him whenever they needed him but the judge did not make any decision on that.
Counsel for the MP included Messrs Ata Akyea, Mike Oquaye Jnr and Kuku Welsing Jones.
Supporters of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) filled the court to capacity to lend moral support to Mr Agyapong who appeared hale and hearty and gave thumbs up to most of the supporters as he walked out of the courtroom.
Senior counsel present at the trial included Freddy Blay, former 1 st Deputy Speaker of Parliament.
The case has been adjourned to May 23, 2012.
The MP walked to freedom two weeks ago after spending four days in the custody of the Bureau of National Investigations, after being arrested on the charges of attempted felony, genocide and terrorism.
He is on a GH¢200,000 bail.
He has pleaded not guilty to the charges and was granted bail after his lawyers, led by Nii Ayikoi Otoo, former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, prayed the court for bail for the accused person on grounds that the facts did not support the charges and the judge later urged the state to take a second look at the charges preferred against the accused.
The facts presented by the principal state attorney, Anthony Rexford Wiredu, are that the accused person is the MP for Assin North and the owner of Oman FM, an Accra-based radio station located at Madina Zongo Junction.
On April 13, 2012, between the hours of 7am and 8 am, the MP phoned into a newspaper review programme to make a contribution and got so incensed that he started inciting people to violence.
He said the MP said a gong-gong was caused to be beaten in the Biakoye constituency of the Volta Region calling on minors to get out and register in the ongoing biometric voter registration exercise.
Mr. Agyapong noted that the NPP was ready to do likewise in the Ashanti Region and have the process destroyed altogether.
In addition, he stated that the owner of Oman FM said that the police had failed to take action in some reported cases of violence against NPP members and called on all Akans and Ashantis to throw stones at anyone who entered their shops and lynch the police for their inaction.
Mr. Wiredu said the MP said Akans should beat Voltarians and Gas and referred to one case of a certain Mohammed Mumuni of Odododiodoo who was beaten by some perceived members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and added that he had declared war.