Friday 27th April 2018. High Court Criminal 2. Court rise!!!
In entered His Lordship Mr. Justice Ekow Baiden, Justice of the High Court. As the most senior lawyer at that material moment, I got up and prayed the Court to call my case so that I can rush to the Supreme Court.
His Lordship asked me to wait for a few minutes and after about three minutes, my case was called: The Republic versus Adams Addy and Another – a contempt application.
We the lawyers announced ourselves, and the Judge asked:
“I have looked at this contempt application…..why can’t you people live in peace? Why can’t you settle this matter? Armed robbers are having a field day, because we the decent citizens are lawless – as for me in my Court if you fall into the soup I will deal with you…..
Everybody was quiet in the courtroom, as His Lordship, obviously speaking from his heart made it very clear that the LAW works in his Court.
Even though I have been a lawyer for thirty something years, reader, I confess that the way the Judge spoke, I became scared: if you joke with the law and they bring you to this Court, reader, you are dead.
To the surprise of everybody, when the case was over and we got up, virtually the courtroom, full of combatants’ supporters became empty. WOW!!
Reader, as I left the Court walking away with some colleagues, we chatted freely about indiscipline in our society, the heart of lawlessness.
A court grants injunction against the holding of an election, and an MP and a DCE boldly defied the court order go ahead to hold the election and brag openly that “no wayside” judge can order us to stop elections” …………..and gets away with it?
A court grants an injunction that “don’t conduct an election” and in open defiance, you go ahead to conduct the election?
Where is the LAW?
You know, reader, you can quote me: the white man is no better than us, in fact we in Africa have far more better and RICHER natural resources than them, but we are poor and backward and almost very insignificant in world affairs just because while in Europe and America the LAW is SUPREME, here, in Africa, where is the LAW?
Believe you me, one day, in London, at the Palace of Westminster, a certain man, wielding a pistol, shot the Prime Minister to death at a close range. He was arrested, charged for murder, and within ONE week, reader, ONE WEEK, they had gone through ALL the processes of trial, including appeal, and the King signed the death sentence, and he was HANGED!!!
The LAW WORKS!!!
In the USA, they have a law that if you are caught for tax evasion and you are found guilty the penalty is you go to JAIL; the Court cannot impose a fine. Vice President Spiro T Agnew to Richard Nixon was arrested tried for tax evasion and jailed for six months! THE LAW WORKS!
Only a few days ago, a famous TV host, Bill Cosby was RE – TRIED after the first trial ended inconclusively. A new jury found him guilty, and he is due for sentencing. THE LAW WORKS!
I will never forget an unbelievable experience I had in the USA, in the city of Washington. I was visiting as Deputy Minister of Local Government, and my host was a University Professor.
Driving me around on a certain street, he asked me to take a look at some imposing strong building and I asked: “What of it?”
In reply, he said the local authorities gave PERMIT for ELEVEN floors, but the owner decided to add one more floor to it, making it TWELVE. The Local authorities told him that “look here, we gave you permit to build eleven floors and we ain’t gonna change it. Either you demolish the 12th floor or you don’t enter the building!” THE LAW WORKS!
A classmate of mine at Legon Law faculty is now a University Professor of Law in Australia. He tells me that in his own bungalow, his own acquired residence, he decided to cut down a tree, IN HIS OWN HOUSE, and the local authorities held his neck, as if he has committed MURDER.
THE LAW WORKS
Reader, the other day my good friend Musah Superior, MCE for Tamale was telling me “Captain, the problem of Tamale is NOT insecurity or religious fanaticism – it is just INDISCIPLINE and lawlessness”
You know, go to any of the Brong Ahafo towns, especially NSOATRE, BEREKUM, DORMAA, BECHEM….. look at their buildings……STRAIGHT lines – all built before Independence. These days that we are lawyers, doctors and professors, go to the newly built areas – we build ANYWHERE, regardless of even water bodies!!!
Where is the LAW?
The other day former Head of State, President JJ Rawlings during a cabinet meeting physically beat up his own Vice President, KN Arkaah…..and got away with it. In Europe or America he would have been arrested and JAILED!
It is amazing but CAN you believe that DURING the colonial days in Gold Coast there was NEVER a chieftaincy dispute ANYWHERE? WHY?
Because if you make the slightest noise, you will be arrested and sent to court for ‘disturbing public peace’ or ‘conduct to the breach of peace.’
Whatever your problem, NEGOTIATE a peaceful solution. Period.
Reader, there can be no development without a STRONG regime of LAW and ORDER. A trader should be able to move goods and services from Elubo down through to Aflao without any fear of attacks anywhere on the road.
You are a businessman? Pay your taxes and do your business. You are a politician? Organize the people, speak to them, show them your programme and win their hearts. If you win, fine, if you lose, try again. Don’t twist the rules. Don’t let your relatives, girlfriends and cousins become polling station executives, then when they put injunction on you, out of arrogance, you claimed a wayside Judge has done what? How dare you? Who do you think you are? God?
Reader, watch television and see African migrants braving all the risks to cross the Mediterranean to go to Europe, land of law and order, to do very menial and unthinkable jobs, washing dead bodies, sweeping streets, washing plates in restaurants – just because they cannot endure hardships here…… hardships borne out of lawlessness, where Doctor Opuni can accrue so much wealth from corruption that he can renovate a complete town for the funeral of his mother, and still walk free………
Where is the LAW?
By the Grace of God, I am a lawyer and I can assure you that if you ask me where is the law, I will tell you, point blank that – the law is NOT at Jubilee House, it is NOT in Parliament House, it is NOT at the Police Headquarters, it is NOT in Burma Camp.
THE LAW IS IN THE COURTROOM!
Our Judges MUST sit up. They MUST uphold the law. When ANYBODY jokes with the law, DEAL with him, so that ALL of us, from His Excellency the President to the street cleaner – we will FEAR the LAW – that is all.
I hear there is a no-nonsense Judge in Brong Ahafo – he sent even a Paramount Chief to jail for contempt of Court. Yes. That is the spirit. We don’t need any military coup to liberate, redeem or revolutionize us – all we need are bold High Court Judges who will ENFORCE the law.
Why is it that the best school everywhere in the world is the most disciplined school? In Ghana, go to Wesley Girls High School – from generation to generation – and you will SEE the meaning of DISCIPLINE – you are the daughter of who? The Pope? Or Donald Trump? There is no school in Ghana comparable to Wesley Girls. Because of one word – DISCIPLINE.
Let us strengthen LAW and ORDER, in every nook and cranny of our motherland, and we will be on the highway to making Ghana a paradise for all.
Asks Nkrabeah Effah Dartey