
Audio By Carbonatix
Government's attempt to free the garnisheed account of the Minister of Food and Agriculture in the ISOFOTON SA case, hit a snag yesterday as an Accra High Court rejected an application filed by the Attorney-General in connection with it.The application for a stay of execution in respect of the garnisheed Ministry of Agriculture's Engineering Department Account, following government's failure to pay to the Spanish firm, the remaining of a l.3million dollar judgement debt, was rejected by the court because there were no special conditions to merit the granting of the application.It means the account would remain garnisheed until the government settled the debt owed ISOFOTON, a situation which would hamper the operations of the Agriculture Ministry.Justice Ernest Obimpeh, the trial judge, ruling on the application, noted that there were no special circumstances to warrant the granting of the application.The judgement debt resulted from the NPP government's abrogation of a contract with ISOFOTON SA.So far, the State has paid 400,000 dollars out of the 1,3million dollars owed ISOFOTON SA, but had defaulted in the payment of the three remaining tranches.The Accra High Court, in a garnishee order issued on May 2, this year, froze the Ministry's Engineering Department's Accounts for nonpayment of the remaining part of a 1.3 million dollar judgement debt owed ISOFOTON SA.The government, through the Ministries of Food and Agriculture, and Energy, and ISOFOTON entered into a formal agreement on September 22, 2005 for the supply and installation of solar-powered water pumping irrigation systems and solar electrification projects in remote areas of the country, under the second Ghana-Spanish Financial Protocol.However, the then Chief of Staff, Kwadwo Mpiani, allegedly abrogated the irrigation and solar electrification contracts in March 2006, and awarded them to other Spanish firms, Incatema Indema and Elecnor respectively, for unknown reasons.Not satisfied with such mistreatment, ISOFOTON consequently sued the government in January 2007, and won a default judgement of 1.3million dollars.The State in 2009, filed processes in court in an attempt to set aside that default judgement, but ended up reaching an out-of-court settlement with the company to pay an amount of $I.3 million.On September 28, 2010, the settlement agreement was filed and adopted by the court on September 29, 2010.However, the State failed to honour the payment obligation, prompting ISOFOTON to file for the Agriculture Ministry's Engineering Department accounts to be garnisheed.On April 20, this year, the A-G tried to set aside the garnishee process but failed, and on June 5, applied for a stay of execution which the court rejected yesterday.
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
-
Manuel Koranteng writes: Work, wellbeing and why Ghana’s workplace culture needs an immediate rethink
2 hours -
Overcooked meals depriving Ghanaians of vital nutrients — Nova Wellness CEO
4 hours -
Ghana’s silent health crisis takes centre stage as GMTF courts CHAG partnership
4 hours -
Bosome Freho District Assembly unveils 100 street sweepers to improve sanitation
4 hours -
VAST Ghana calls for stronger excise tax regime to combat rising NCD burden
4 hours -
Ghana close to issuing forest carbon credits under J-REDD+ programme – Minister
5 hours -
I returned to Ghana to make a difference in healthcare — Dr Naa Ashietey
5 hours -
Ghana Music Awards USA 2026 partners with WatsUp TV to amplify Ghanaian music
5 hours -
Utility companies should fix their losses, not pass to consumers – AGI
5 hours -
AI and the future of Jobs: Ghana’s AI Strategy and opportunities for youth action
6 hours -
Ghana scores 22 out of 100 on budget transparency, raising accountability concerns
6 hours -
Sentuo Oil Refinery expansion to create 1,500 jobs, boost energy security – John Jinapor
6 hours -
Adwoa Safo: JoyNews at sickbed of injured former Dome-Kwabenya MP
6 hours -
Partey wins JAC Motors MVP award after performance in Black Stars draw with England
6 hours -
GES PRO urges GTEC to publish accredited institutions instead of focusing on unaccredited schools
6 hours