Opuni trial: Supreme Court refuses application for Dotse to recuse himself

The Supreme Court has refused an application filed by lawyers of embattled COCOBOD CEO, Dr. Stephen Opuni to have Justice Jones Dotse recuse himself from a review application brought before the court by the Attorney General.

Lawyers of Mr Opuni had alleged that the Attorney General, Godfred Dame, had a “secret meeting” with Justice Dotse 3 days after the court heard a review application brought before the court by the AG.

This, meeting, counsel for Mr. Opuni contended that raises suspicions that the court could be compromised in his ruling on the review application which was scheduled for Tuesday, October 26.

Dr Opuni in his affidavit dated 25 October 2021 in support of his recusal application a day before the court’s ruling on the review application, Dr Opuni said his attention has been drawn to a widely circulated internet publication by one Kelvin Taylor, a Ghanaian broadcaster in the United States of America in which he alleged that Mr Dame, on 15 October 2021, went to the office of Justice Jones Dotse, the presiding judge and had an extensive meeting with him.

Dr Opuni said the alleged meeting, according to Kevin Taylor, lasted for more than two hours.

“… I state that the said two-hour meeting which, according to the broadcast of the said Kevin Taylor, took place on the said Friday, the 15th day of October 2021, after the hearing of the oral arguments on Tuesday, the 12th day of October 2021, in respect of the review application, leaves me in serious doubts of the impartiality of his Lordship Justice Jones Dotse in the review application and convinces me that the Attorney General intends to use all means to ensure that I am convicted.

“… I have been advised by counsel and, verily believe same to be true, that it is a truism and an established principle of law that justice should not only be done but manifestly and undoubted be seen to be done”, he argued in his affidavit.

Dr Opuni added: “Unfortunately, the continuation of Justice Jones Dote will destroy this sacred legal cliché. I pray that Justice Jones Dotse is recused as member of the review panel to enable meaning to be given to this legal cliché.”

Dr Opuni further alleged that during Mr Dame’s tenure as a Deputy Attorney General, he attended a town hall meeting organised by the Akufo Addo government which was attended by supporters and sympathisers of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) on 6 April 2019 in London, England.

He said at the widely broadcast meeting on social media and OMEGA LIVE TV, a private television station, Mr Dame stated: “Even with regard to that, the prosecution has started, and I can allude to four cases of persons, close associates with [the] John Mahama administration”.

“The first is the Opuni trial. We all know Dr Opuni was one person who was used by the Mahama administration to perpetrate wrongdoings. Now, there is a prosecution of the former COCOBOD CEO, Dr Opuni. It is ongoing and it involves various huge sums of money as losses to the state”, Dr Opuni’s affidavit quoted the then-Deputy Attorney General as having said.

Source: editors.3news.com|Ghana