A Cape Coast High Court has quashed the decision to remand NDC’s Communication Officer for the Central Region, Kwesi Dawood.

The court presided over by Justice Kwasi Boakye on Thursday granted the application of the counsel for the accused praying the court to quash the decision of the Circuit Court that remanded the accused to reappear on the 27th of October.

Mr. Dawood is standing trial for incest, defilement and assault on his biological daughter.

The circuit court in remanding the accused indicated it had to refer and consider the many precedents the lawyer for the accused had referred to in his plea to seek bail for the accused.

Justice Kwasi Boakye criticized the Circuit Court’s decision saying the trial court was not justified under the circumstances in the exercise of its discretion to remand the applicant for two [2] weeks to give its ruling.

He spelt out the laws governing bail: the 1992 Constitution, the Criminal Procedure Code, 1960 [Act 30] and judicial precedents or case law and said the rationale behind bail was based on the need to safeguard the basic rights inherent in the human being.

He maintained it was the duty of the courts to protect, defend and enforce the fundamental human rights whenever they were being suppressed or stifled by any authority or persons in authority.

The presiding judge further stated that in the instant case, the applicant is presumed to be innocent until he is otherwise established and it would, therefore, be unjust to deprive him of his rights to enjoy his freedom in the absence of any law prohibiting the grant of bail to him under the circumstances as established by the facts of the case.

Additionally, he noted that respect for human right is an attribute or element of good governance, and all efforts must be made to ensure its observance.

He averred: “I have already stated that bail applications in the jurisdiction are regulated by the 1992 Constitution, Act 30 and judicial decisions, for example Kpebu No. 2 vs Attorney-General No. 2. which is a Supreme Court judgment dated 5th May 2016 and which the trial court is bound.”

Accordingly, the judge expressed his satisfaction that the applicant has properly invoked the jurisdiction of the court and also demonstrated that the court can exercise its discretion.

He, thus, ordered that the applicant be granted bail pending trial; should he fulfil the bail conditions of three [3] sureties who shall be public/civil servants living and working within the Cape Coast Metropolis, in the sum of fifty thousand Ghana cedis [GHC50,000] each.

The applicant was further ordered to deposit his passport[s] with the registrar of the court.

Background of the case

The background facts of the application are that the applicant has been put before the Circuit Court, Cape Coast charged with defilement, incest and assault contrary to the law.

On 14th October 2021 when he first appeared before the trial court, his counsel applied for bail pending trial on his behalf.

Eventually, the trial court adjourned for two [2] weeks to rule on the application. Per the court notes attached to the applicant’s supplementary affidavit as Exh KD 3, below was what the court said;
“Case adjourned to 27/10/2021 for ruling as counsel has quoted so many precedents that the court has to refer and consider”.

Meanwhile, the fact still remains that the applicant has been remanded into custody, hence the present application.