Woyome cash: AG demands apology from Amidu over “false claims”

The Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong, has said she will demand of the Supreme Court an order for the former Attorney-General, Martin Amidu, to apologize for “false allegations” he made against President John Mahama and the government, in respect of government's decision not to orally examine Mr. Alfred Agbesi Woyome, over the unpaid 51 million Ghana Cedis judgement debt.

Mr. Amidu, whose personal action got the Supreme Court to order Mr. Woyome to repay the amount, is back at the apex court, praying it to allow him examine him orally following the decision of the state to discontinue that process.

Mr. Amidu in his application to the Supreme Court alleged among other things that the Attorney-General withdrew her application to examine Mr. Alfred Agbesi Woyome because President Mahama personally gave an order .

Mr. Amidu's suit covers the Attorney-General, Mr. Alfred Agbesi Woyome, and Waterville Holdings (BVI) Ltd.

According to the man who earned the nickname citizen vigilante, this was done to protect some members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), as well as government officials who benefited from the amount.

Martin Amidu
But the AG in response to the application on Thursday stated in his affidavit that Mr. Amidu's claim suggesting that President Mahama ordered the discontinuation of the oral examination of Mr. Woyome is false.

She said she will demand of the court to instruct Mr. Woyome to apologize for those comments.

“That the Plaintiff/Applicant ought to know that any deliberate deception of this Honourable Court on the part of a lawyer is professional misconduct by the rules of the Legal Profession. Furthermore, the Plaintiff/Applicant contrary to the Rules of Court deposes to the scandalous, offensive, malicious and deliberate falsehood without providing the sources of his information or belief. At the hearing of the Plaintiff/Applicant's application I shall apply to the court to have these offending matters struck out of the Plaintiff/Applicant's affidavit, and that he should be ordered to apologize for making these false allegations.”

The Attorney-General also questioned in her affidavit the right of Mr. Martin Amidu to orally interrogate Mr. Martin Amidu in court.

“That in response to paragraphs 15, 17 and 18, I state that it is arguable whether or not the Plaintiff/Applicant has a right to examine the 3rd Defendant. The order to enforce the Judgment was directed at the 1st Defendant and not the Plaintiff/Applicant. Even if the Plaintiff/Applicant did have this right, the facts relied on by the Plaintiff/Applicant to found this application are scandalous, offensive, malicious and deliberate falsehood and cannot be the basis for the grant of his application.”

The Attorney-General also stated that, “That I assure this Honourable Court that the staff of the Attorney-General's Department and I have every intention of taking all steps necessary to recover sums adjudged to be repaid to the State and to defend the State in respect of all spurious claims made against the State.”

Background
Alfred Woyome was paid ¢51 million after he claimed that he helped Ghana to raise funds to construct stadia for purposes of hosting the CAN 2008 Nations Cup.

However an Auditor General's report released in 2010, said the amount was paid illegally to the National Democratic Congress (NDC) financier.

The Supreme Court in 2014 ordered Mr. Woyome to pay back ¢51 million fraudulently taken from the state, after Mr. Martin Amidu, challenged the legality of the judgment debt paid the businessman, Waterville, and Isofoton.

Following delays in retrieving the money, the Supreme Court judges unanimously granted the Attorney-General clearance to execute the court's judgment ordering Mr. Woyome to refund the cash to the state.

Woyome prevents officials from valuing residence

Mr. Woyome in April 2016, prevented officials of the Attorney General's Department and the Lands Commission from having access to his Kpehe residence for valuation.

The move was part of a directive from the Supreme Court to retrieve monies illegally paid to him. But Woyome resisted the move, saying the planned valuation was illegal.

Mr. Woyome had earlier won the criminal prosecution that sought to imprison him for the offence.

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By: Ebenezer Afanyi Dadzie/citifmonline.com/Ghana