Bulldog
A witness in the trial of Artiste Manager, Lawrence Nana Asiamah Hanson aka Bulldog yesterday told an Accra Circuit Court that she sees the accused person’s retraction at the end of the show on which he allegedly threatened the President, as an afterthought.
The witness, Theodosia Antwiwaa Appiah told the court that Bulldog did not show any form of remorse but only retracted the alleged threat because Nana Ama Agyemang McBrown, the host of the show asked him to do so.
She said this in response to a question posed by Jerry Avenorgbo, counsel for Bulldog who queried the witness on whether she would be “surprised to note that the host of that particular show was in this court to tell us that that statement was retracted.”
“I said one of the panelist, Afia Schwarzenegger, told him that he had threatened the President and said if she is called as a witness she won’t go and then the accused asked her to shut up and that no one will call her as a witness. What he did at the end of the programme, I don’t see it as a retraction. I see it as an afterthought,” the witness told the court.
Mr. Avenorgbo vehemently objected to the comment saying the witness cannot say the retraction was an afterthought but the court presided over by Her Honour Evelyn Asamoah overruled the objection.
Main Trial
Bulldog is before the court for allegedly threatening that the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo will not finish his four year tenure if he failed to pay Menzgold customers.
The defense in cross-examining Nana Ama McBrown, the prosecution’s first witness, asked her whether Bulldog retracted what he said on the show and she said “yes”.
But the second prosecution witness who reported the matter to the police stated yesterday that Bulldog did not express any remorse in doing so.
“Initially when Afia Schwarzenegger told him to retract, he was furious and his demeanour didn’t show any kind of remorse but then I think it was because the hostess of the programme asked him to retract that’s why I said I don’t see that as a retraction,” Theodosia Appiah stated while under cross-examination.
The lawyer then asked the witness if by that response she was expressing her opinion about the show to the court and the witness said “It is not an opinion but a perception that is why I reported to the police.”
“So you are telling this court that it is your perception of what you saw on TV right, the lawyer asked and she said “yes”.
Mr. Avenorgbo then asked the witness whether her perception overrides Bulldog’s retraction and Mrs. Agyemang McBrown’s statement that the accused retracted the statement but the question was objected to by the prosecution on ground that the lawyer was seeking the opinion of the witness and the court upheld the objection.
The lawyer then asked the witness what she meant when she stated in her witness statement that she considered Bulldog’s comment as a serious threat to the President and likely to breach the peace in the country.
“Bulldog is a public figure with so many followers. What he was saying might have an impact on the ordinary Ghanaian,” she answered.
Mr. Avenorgbo then asked the witness if she saw anybody going to the street or any violent rioting taking place as a result of the statement made on that programme on UTV.
“No. I don’t need to see anyone in that act before I report to the police,” she responded.
Hearing continues today where the prosecution is expected to call its third witness.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak