A Private legal practitioner wonders why some so-called ‘powerful’ individuals escape equal punishment like the ordinary Ghanaian when found guilty of a crime.
According to Lawyer Kwame Adofo, indemnity given to those individuals is “unfair” and “discriminatory”.
“We are in a country if you are rich, powerful and connected you will not be prosecuted when you misbehave,” he said in an interview with NEAT FM’s morning show, 'Ghana Montie'.
Lawyer Adofo was discussing jailed defunct Capital Bank founder, William Ato Essien.
Mr Ato Essien has been sentenced to 15 years imprisonment with hard labour by the Accra High Court for embezzeling over GH¢90 million of the bank’s money.
But Lawyer Adofo questioned why he was going to jail alone without some powerful members of the now-collapsed bank.
Listen to the interview below
Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/peacefmonline.com/ghana
Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. |
@Babe, they were acquitted because they were tried at courts whose judges are controlled by the establishment as alluded to by @Takum. Their acquittal was predetermined even before the so-called trials began. So their guilt isn't cleared and they know. It is God will exact true justice for all the wicked and evil things they connive and do to Ghanaians.
Lawyer speak to the facts and the law and not on your emotions. He is going to jail alone because he said he is guilty. The other board members we tried and acquitted.
This is a country where party members lobby to become board members and chair in reputable state institutions. A case in point is Paul Adom-Otchere in Ghana Airport Company, Freddy Blay as GNPC board chair and Allotey Jacobs once on ECG board. Non-executive board members are supposed to provide oversight responsibility over the executive management of state institutions but what we see here in Ghana is that, they connive with the executive run down these institutions knowing very well that the state will not hold them accountable. No wonder there are no jobs for the youth. Board members are required to exhibit high level of competence, integrity and professionalism but all manner of party people are appointed as board members. Capital Bank was a regulated private equity but public interest firm so the directors must be punished for failing to prevent these bad practices. In the advanced democracies, people even turn down board appointments because when things go wrong, they may end up in jail but here in Ghana it is a kind of golden handshake for supporting a political party. If the country doesn’t change the constitution and limit the powers of the executive through a referendum, we will continue to see these injustice where the political class will always misbehave and go unpunished.
Ghanaians are timid and very ediotic. There is no democracy anywhere in the world which will permit the kind of things these evil politicians do to citizens in this country. First and foremost they make laws for us which don't apply to them and their cronies! Courts and appointments to these courts are controlled by corrupt politicians. Appointments to top jobs in the security and law enforcement agencies are again controlled by these evil people. They don't hold themselves accountable for anything and to anyone. They don't have morals, no integrity and no character. A case in point is the refusal of the AG to prosecute galamsey masters who have evidently destroyed our forests and water bodies for everyone to see. Let a hungry person steal a tuber of yam and he/she risks going to prison for years! No wonder over 85% of prison inmates are between 18 and 40, an age bracket which excludes these corrupt thieefs! People who call for change in this unjust system are vilified and in some cases murdered through contract killing arranged by these same evil and corrupt politicians. And the sad part is that those contracted to carry out these dirtyy jobs are the ones whose rights their would-be victims fight for. You see why we are a tsupid people. They use us against ourselves so they can perpetuate this corrupt system which has kept us poor. Call for mass protests against police brutality and only a few people will turn up even though majority are suffering. We are tsupid and unpatriotic and hence we will continue to have the kind of leaders or rather appropriately, dealers that we have! Pastor Mensah Otabil together with others should be standing trial for this mess that caused so much pain to people regardless of his standing in society. But everybody is afraid to say it and we all act nice about it and the best some have done is to say "others should be on trial". Mention them! Dont they have names? Hypocrisy of the highest magnitude ! Again essien was used as a pawn for their dirrty business and now he is cooling off whilst they toast to his demise.