Justice John Najet-Asam, the Accra Fast Track High Court judge trying Alfred Agbesi Woyome, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) financier, in connection with the GH�51.2 million judgment debt fraud, yesterday expressed his disappointment with the way the state was going about its prosecution of the case.
He asked, �Is the state serious in prosecuting the matter?� after Mathew Amponsah, the chief state attorney, was sent to pray for an adjournment because the state had not been able to fully have a conference with the witnesses who were also to tender documents material to the case.
The trial judge, who is at the Financial Division, wondered why the state, at the last hearing, said it had witnesses it was ready to bring to the court and had now made a u-turn that the witnesses were out of jurisdiction and had just returned so they needed time.
According to him, the witnesses who were already within the jurisdiction could be brought to testify while the others who the state attorneys were yet to meet for the said documents could be called to testify later.
Justice Najet-Asam, who also said he was disappointed with the attitude of the state, shrugged his shoulders and said, �I am not doing your case for you anyway but I believe we can do this quickly and finish this case in the interest of Mother Ghana.�
Earlier, the state had said it could not bring their witnesses because it intended to call employees of various companies who were involved in the subject matter before the court.
The state attorney noted that the witnesses had been out of the jurisdiction and the state needed those valuable documents from them, praying the court to adjourn the case to enable them to fully meet the witnesses after which they could come and testify.
Musah Ahmed, counsel for Woyome, said the decision of the court to adjourn the case was entirely within its discretion.
The case has been adjourned to July 12, 2012.
Mangowa Ghunney, the first and only witness so far, testified at the trial at the last appearance and denied she made any recommendations for payment to be made to Woyome in her memo to the Finance Minister.
The witness, a legal advisor at the Finance Ministry, told the court she only summarized the payment to be made to Woyome and forwarded it to her boss, the minister �for consideration and a follow up�.
Ms. Ghunney was under cross-examination by Osafo Buabeng, counsel for Woyome, who asked her to bring the memo on which she summarized the payment for his client.
According to her, the memo was part of a routine procedure which she usually undertook. She often submitted such memos to the minister.
She said she was then the deputy director of the legal division of the ministry, adding that the head of the legal division was Paul Asimenu, an alleged accomplice of Woyome who was standing trial with him but was later discharged.
However, when asked to read a portion of a statement from the minister, the witness said that portion had been cancelled.
The legal advisor was asked by counsel for Woyome to read the document by Paul Asimenu on the payment, which deemed that the two per cent claim was legitimate.
He wanted to tender the document through her but the principal state attorney in the case, Cynthia Lamptey, objected on grounds that the defence team had not told the court whether or not it wanted to call Asimenu as a witness.
The trial judge overruled the objection and said he would allow the document because it was public and prepared by someone from the same department.
The witness said she stood by her statement that the payment was made to Woyome after the court order.
Lawyers for Woyome tendered in three more documents to back the claim that their client did not defraud the state.
They contended that their client went through lawful means to obtain the GH�51.2 million judgment payment.
Woyome has pleaded not guilty to defrauding by false pretences and causing financial loss to the State.
He has been granted GH�20 million bail with three sureties to be justified.
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