The suspects
Defense Counsel for Donyo Kafui, alias Ezor, blacksmith, one of the ten persons accused of high treason, says Staff Sergeant Sule Kwadwo Awarf invited him (Ezor) to Accra to repair his guns and later took videos of him.
He told the Court that since Awarf had a prior knowledge that people from Alavanyo repaired guns for the military, he rather invited him to work for him and recorded him on video to imply that he was manufacturing weapons for the alleged coup plot.
This was during a cross-examination of Staff Sergeant Awarf, Prosecution’s star witness, at the Accra High Court trying the ten accused of plotting to overthrow the Government.
“With the previous knowledge that it is the people from Alavanyo who repair guns, you invited A2 (Ezor) to come and work for you,” Victor Kwajoga Adawudu stated. However, witness said “That’s not true, I don’t know Ezor anywhere.”
It was upon invitation that A2 (Ezor) came and you introduced him to A1 (Dr Mac Palm), the lawyer insisted but Awarf denied.
He said after giving Ezor the guns (Revolver and another) to repair, you turned round and took videos to suggest that A2 (Ezor) was making guns. Awarf answered in the negative.
“You said you picked Ezor from the 37-bus station together with his tools to Alajo,” asked the lawyer, “Yes my lords, together with his tools and bag,” replied the witness.
Did you capture the event, he probed and witness responded “no my lords, the time I picked him was not captured,” adding that “at the time you picked him at 37, the devices were in your custody?”
“Yes my lords, I was in my office when Dr told me to pick A2 (Ezor), so I didn’t go to the house to pick the devices,” Awarf replied.
Mr Adawudu then stated that if the purported assignment was given to him by his superiors he would not decide to capture some and leave the rest as a junior rank and Awarf said it was not true.
Mr Adawudu put it to Staff Sergeant Awarf that the diploma he claimed he used to join the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) did not belong to him (Awarf) but one Kwadwo Awarf, now deceased of Adie3so in Bechem, saying “when you joined GAF with Kwadwo Awarf certificate, the agreement was that you will be giving him some money from your salary” but Awarf denied.
The Counsel said when the deceased started demanding, Awarf saw him as a nuisance to his career and that “the last time Kwadwo Awarf was seen in the village he was in your company, subsequently, he was mysteriously murdered,”
“That’s not true,” said Awarf.
“The reason you changed your name from Inusah Napouh to Kwadwo Awarf was to enable you to use the certificate belonging to Kwadwo Awarf,” Mr Adawudu put it to him.
“Not true,” said Awarf.
He said “you admitted in court that you changed your name and “you confirmed that the certificate used to join the Army doesn’t belong to you,” Awarf denied it that the certificate did not belong to him.
“Not true, A1’s (Dr Mac Palm) lawyer asked me of the courses I did at Bedisco and he told me I used my own certificate, my understanding was that I forged the certificate and I told him no, it was the same certificate I used to join military,” he explained but the lawyer said “this is an afterthought”.
Mr Adawudu, also the Defense Counsel for Bright Alan Debrah, alias BB, said Awarf was the one championing the coup plot and not BB, saying,“when bringing the idea of the overthrow A3 (BB) didn’t believe in your idea, you were doing this to feign an interest to further your agenda,”
Awarf : “the idea came from A1 (Dr Mac Palm and A3 (BB) whereas Warrant Officer Class Two (W02) Esther Saan recruited me to join.”
Counsel asked Awarf to explain why he said it on the video that he was prepared for everything and he said “yes my lords BB asked how prepared we were and I told him that we were ready, prepared to capture anything they wanted us to do”.
Ezor, BB and Dr Mac Palm are standing trial with Johannes Zikpi, signaler with the Ghana Armed Forces, and Warrant Officer Class Two (WO2) Esther Saan.
The rest are Corporal Seidu Abubakar, Corporal Sylvester Akanpewu, Lance Airforce Corporal (LAC) Ali Solomon, Colonel Kojo Gameli and Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Benjamin Agordzo.
They have denied the charges and granted bail.
The lawyer has prayed the Court to order the witness to make the certificate, other documents available for cross examination on change of name, second class and others.
GNA