Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie has made it clear that the criminal cases involving former National Signals Bureau (NSB) Director-General Kwabena Adu-Boahen and former National Food and Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO) CEO Hanan Abdul-Wahab will continue during the legal vacation, rejecting attempts by their lawyers to postpone proceedings until October.
The ruling follows a challenge by defence lawyers, including Samuel Atta Akyea and Godfred Dame, who questioned a warrant issued by the Chief Justice authorising the judges handling the cases to sit as vacation judges.
The lawyers argued that members of the defence teams had already made professional and travel commitments for the vacation period and therefore requested that the cases be adjourned until after the courts resumed regular sittings.
However, speaking at the 2nd Quadrennial Delegates Congress of the Senior Staff Association of the Judicial Service on Tuesday, August 11, Justice Baffoe-Bonnie rejected the request, stressing that adjournments are judicial decisions to be determined by the courts and not administrative matters governed by the legal vacation calendar.
His position effectively means that the two high-profile criminal cases will proceed without interruption during the vacation period.
Following the decision, the court adjourned the matter to August 18 for further case management proceedings.
The defence had maintained that some lawyers representing the accused persons were outside the country and had arranged their schedules before the decision was taken to continue hearings during the legal vacation.
The Chief Justice’s stance signals that the judiciary intends to maintain momentum in the prosecution of the cases despite objections from the defence teams.
