
Audio By Carbonatix
The presiding judge in the ongoing Election Petition hearing, in an ominous departure from the norm, began Wednesday's proceedings with a search for Sammy Awuku, New Patriotic Party (NPP) Deputy Communications director.It is not clear yet what he wants to do to the NPP spokesperson but he cited Awuku for making presumptuous comments regarding a warning he issued last week to deal with persons who misreport the court proceedings.The court has issued several warnings to lawyers and journalists to desist from misreporting proceedings in the court but those appear to have gone unheeded.On Monday Justice Atuguba gave a final warning that the court will no longer tolerate such behaviors, adding “any person be it in the media or not who crosses the final touchline of proper coverage reportage will be met with the appropriate response.”Sammy Awuku did not appear enthused with the warning by the Presiding Judge.On a discussion programme a day after warning was issued, he accused the panel of being selective in their application of their powers. He questioned why the Daily Guide newspaper was singled out for criticism when other pro-NDC newspapers and representatives had made worse comments about the proceedings.His reactions have not been taken lightly by the Panel. When the hearing resumed, Wednesday, Justice Atuguba opened proceedings by asking the audience if the NPP man was present in court.“I hear he comes to court”, he said and added he did not know him.He said although the court had issued final warning, “some people seem to be above them”. He said the judges by virtue of their work do not know the executive or monitor political commentary.Nonetheless, such political commentary if unguarded can have serious consequences for the security of this country.He noted the ordinary Ghanaian relies heavily on political figures for information. When this information is skewed, it can cause tensions leading to violence and their attendant loss of lives as exampled by the 2007 Kenyan experience.He said the court will not allow public confidence in the judiciary to break down and reiterated that the final warning given by the bench covers everybody in this country “from the President down to everybody”.Although Awuku was not in court, the judge said the bench “will deal with the matter in due course”.
DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
Tags:
DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
Latest Stories
-
UEW Vice-Chancellor calls for rethink of Ghana’s education system at 2026 Public Lecture
4 minutes -
Health expert urges enough sleep, rest to control hypertension
5 minutes -
Foreign Affairs Ministry alerts travellers as EU rolls out new biometric Entry/Exit System
6 minutes -
Publican AI system doesn’t determine values, it flags suspicious transactions – GRA Boss
17 minutes -
Balancing the scales: McDan Aviation, E&P, and politics of opportunity in Ghana’s economy
21 minutes -
GRA credits Publican AI system for exposing GH¢11bn port leakages
24 minutes -
Owabi, Barekese water plants face shutdown threat over pollution and power outages
32 minutes -
Catholic Bishops call for national dialogue on LGBTQ debate
36 minutes -
Softcare FM Manufacturing Ltd backs Consumer Health Week, pushes science-driven care agenda
37 minutes -
The Eyes of Ghana to premiere in April, spotlighting rare Nkrumah-era footage
41 minutes -
$31bn transferred without matching imports in five years — GRA boss
54 minutes -
JoyNews Impact Maker, Williams Akongbabre, presents award to people of Bawku West
54 minutes -
Kenya backs Morocco’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara, signals push for implementation
1 hour -
Hip-hop pioneer, Afrika Bambaataa, dies aged 68
1 hour -
Maison Yusif Fragrance becomes first Ghanaian brand to showcase at Paris Perfume Week
1 hour