The Court of Appeal in Accra, yesterday acquitted and discharged Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, the Minority Leader, of all criminal charges against him in the ongoing €2.7 million ambulance trial before the High Court.
This was based on the appeal against the ruling of submission of no case which was earlier overruled by Justice Afia Serwaa Asare-Botwe, the trial high court judge.
Dr Forson and Mr Richard Jakpa, the third accused have been asked to open their defence by Justice Asare-Botwe on account of a prima facie case made against them by the prosecution.
However, a 2-1 majority decision of the Court of Appeal presided over by Justice Alex Poku Acheampong set aside the ruling of the trial high court.
Justices Kweku Tawiah Ackah-Boafo and Philip Bright Mensah granted the appeal, while Justice Acheampong dissented.
Dr Forson was charged with willfully causing loss to the state and intentionally misapplying public property while Jakpa faces a charge of willfully causing financial loss.
Justice Ackah-Boafo ruled that the prosecution failed to establish sufficient evidence and that the trial judge erred in calling on Dr Forson to open his defense.
He held that there were no proven facts against the accused and the evidence presented were based on impermissible speculations.
The judge noted that there was no link between the evidence heard and what happened for the third accused to be called to open his defense.
Justice Mensah observed that apart from the letters Dr Forson wrote, he did not do much to be asked to open his defence.
He said the Ministry of Health had to do pre inspection and not Dr Forson.
It is his opinion that the Ministry of Health should be held accountable for failing to do their work.
“As at today the ambulances are still at the port and that cannot be blamed on Dr Forson,” Justice Mensah said.
Justice Mensah said the evidence by prosecution is not reliable for a court to deal with them.
He said if there was any financial loss that was based on the recklessness on the part of the Ministry of Health.
Justice Acheampong for his part said the trial judge did not err asking the accused to open their defence.
The accused pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
The facts according to the prosecution are that, Dr Forson and the other accused allegedly breached the procurement law in the purchase of the ambulances.
Mr Dame, prosecuting, said that on August 7, 2014, Dr Forson wrote to the Bank of Ghana (BoG) “urgently requesting to establish the Letters of Credit for the supply of 50 ambulances amounting to €3,950,000, representing 25 per cent of the contract sum, while arrangements were being made to perfect and sign the loan agreement in favour of Big Sea.”
He said on August 12, 2014, Dr Forson wrote to the Controller and Accountant-General authorising the release of GH¢806,688.75 to the Minister of Health for the payment of bank charges covering the establishment of Letters of Credit (LCs) for the supply of 50 Mercedes Benz ambulances and related services.
The facts indicated that Dr Forson further directed that the LCs should be charged to the budget of the Ministry of Health contrary to the Parliamentary approval on the funding for the supply of the ambulances.
The Attorney-General said the Controller and Accountant-General on the authority of the letters dated August 7 and 12, 2014, written by Dr Forson to the BoG authorised it to establish an irrevocable transferable LCs in the sum of €3,950,000 in favour of Big Sea.
He said by February 2015, 30 ambulances had arrived in Ghana and a post-delivery inspection revealed that they had no medical equipment and there were other defects.
BY MALIK SULLEMANA
