Mr. Iddrisu Mahamadu, Accra Circuit Court judge hearing the case involving factions from Osu, has denied that he has been bribed to decide a matter in favour of the accused persons. According to him such a thing could not happen, and that nobody would dare to bribe him. "I work to please my God. You can never hide anything from Him. He sees me all the time and He is the one that I will account to after my death," the judge said in reaction to allegations in open court when a woman informed the court that a man from the other side had been boasting that the "matter was finished because they had seen the court". The judge is hearing the case in which 11 people were arraigned for allegedly breaking into and vandalising the Osu Mantse's palace. Five of the accused persons who pleaded not guilty together with nine others who were not in court are facing 11 counts of conspiracy, causing unlawful damage, causing unlawful harm and assault. The five, namely, Lawrence Quist, Samuel Dowuona, Paul Dowuona, Saban Asten and Adom have each been granted bail in the sum of GH¢ 15,000 with a surety each to be justified, while a bench warrant was issued for the arrest of the others, inc1uding Abdul Mumuni, Yusif Abdul Salami, Mohammed Awal, Abdul Rauf, Abubakar Yusif and Evans Bambara. Mr Mahamadu advised the parties to keep their monies and get ready to contest the case and discarded what he described as "funny talk", because nobody could bribe him. He said that he had been on the bench since 1996, and that some people had tried to bribe him but did not succeed and because of that those people wondered whether he was crazy not to accept bribes. The woman, Victoria Quaye, told the court that Feihi Quartey, who was in court, was among those who attacked the Osu Mantse's palace and was also boasting that the matter was "finished because the court had been seen" but the man denied. The facts of the case, as narrated by ASP Kofi Blagodzi were that at about 10 a.m. on June 26, this year Quist, together with some elders from the Dowuona clan from Osu was invited by the Kpeshie Divisional Commander following intelligence reports that some youth from the clan had planned to take over the Osu Mantse's palace. That, the prosecutor said, was based on an extract received from the National House of Chiefs to the effect that Nii Nortey Owuo III had been destooled as the Osu Mantse. At the meeting, the accused persons were advised to use the due process of the law and not to take the law into their hands as their action was likely to breach the peace. They were alleged to have recruited other persons from Maamobi and Nima and promised them GH¢8,OOO if they invaded the palace. They obliged and subsequently invaded the palace with the intention of occupying it. The accused persons were said to have attacked some people, including some members of the Besheo Cultural troupe who were rehearsing at the palace, and destroyed their drums, valued at GH550, among other things. The police, however, moved in, arrested them and stopped them from causing further damage. Source: Daily Graphic