FEBRUARY 21

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News
DAILY
Supreme Ladies Club donates
items to Korle Bu Children’s ward
BY ROSEMOND BOATENG ADDAI
Rosemond.adjetey@yahoo.com
THE SUPREME Ladies Club has donated items
worth GH¢10,000.00 to the Children’s Ward at the
Korle Bu Teaching Hospital to support the
department give better treatment to the children
hospitalised.
Hajia Muina Buari, president of the non-profit
club, explained to the DAILY HERITAGE that
they came to visit a patient at the ward and the
poor condition of the ward gave them sleepless
night so they decided to help by donating the items.
The club gave wheelchairs, sanitary, hand
sanitizers, toilet rolls, ward screens, trolleys, Blood
Pressure apparatus, monitor, diapers and night
gowns
“Most of us are mothers so we became very
worried since one can never tell when her child will
be admitted to the ward. Therefore with the little
we have we decided to help the ward in order for
the administration to give excellent treatment to the
children,” she added.
She also said the club supports institutions as
and when they are touched and as such was glad the
members did not decline the decision but gave their
AWW enquiry:
full support to meet some of the needs of the
hospital.
The president, while donating the items, called
on other institutions, clubs, churches and nongovernmental
organisations which have the means
to help people in need, especially innocent children
whose parents cannot afford to pay for their
treatment at the various hospitals in the country.
Mrs Joyce Oppong-Ayisi, Head of Nursing at
the Children’s Ward at the Korle Bu Teaching
Hospital, who received the items, expressed
gratitude to the Supreme Ladies Club for coming to
the aid of the ward at a pressing moment.
According to the head, the ladies came for a list
of items needed at the ward so she gave them a list
to choose from but to her surprise, the ladies
bought most of the items.
Mrs Oppong-Ayisi called on other stakeholder
to help furnish the emergency extension room as
the government could not do it alone. •The cleared site
“We need chairs, tables or anything proposed mothers for canthe
use to rest as they wait for their turn to be served.
SHS
A lot of people find it very difficult to pay their
bills. Some people cannot afford to go through
series of examination due to lack of funds so we
need more people to come to their aid by donating
and paying some of the bills for them,” she said.
•Hajia Muina Buari, president of Supreme Ladies Club, presenting the items to
Mrs Joyce Oppong-Ayisi, Head of Nursing, Korle Bu Teaching Hospital
Akufo-Addo petitioned over
Commission’s terms of reference
TWO PRIVATE citizens of Ghana, Eric Nartey
Yeboah and Yussif Ibrahim Bangsua have
petitioned the President Nana Addo Dankwa
Akufo-Addo to extend the terms of reference of
the Ayawaso West Wuogon by-elections
commission of inquiry to include other previous
by-elections in the county.
In an 11 point petition presented to the
President last Friday, the petitioners doubted the
ability of the commission to nib elections violence
in the bud given the terms of reference of the
commission.
The petitioners enumerated, Wulensi, Talensi,
Akwatia and Atiwa by-elections as the foundation
of by-elections violence in Ghana and they need to
be part of the terms of reference of the
commission in order to be able to deal with the
root cause of by-elections violence in Ghana.
The petitioners further stated that, the victims
of the previous by-elections have been gravely
discriminated against much as the perpetrators
have also been endorsed.
It is in the interest of the State, unity and peace
to end all elections related violence and that’s why
•Eric Nartey
Yeboah and Yussif
Ibrahim Bangsua
setting up a commission of inquiry is critical in the
circumstances but the limited nature of the terms
of reference of the commission would leave the
country more injured than healed.
HERITAGE, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2019 WWW.DAILYHERITAGE.COM.GH
Court shoots down case against NPA
BY MUNTALLA INUSAH
muntalla.inusah@dailyheritage.com
THE GENERAL
Jurisdiction Division of
the Accra High Court
has shot down an
interlocutory
application filed by T.
Tekpor Energy asking the court to
quash the National Petroleum
Authority’s (NPA) decision to revoke
its licence.
The company was earlier given a
licence to operate a gas filling station
and distribute same but safety
concerns later prompted the NPA to
revoke its licence. Not satisfied with
the decision, T-Tekpor Energy filed
an application in court asking that
their operations be restored by NPA.
But, the court presided over by
Justice Kweku Tawiah Ackaah-Boafo
ruled that a gas filling station situated
between two schools, Tema
International School and Tema Rich
School, cannot be allowed to operate.
The court was of the considered
view that the safety of the over 800
schoolchildren and the residents of
Afariwaa, near Tema, was at risk.
Justice Ackaah-Boafo ruled that NPA,
as the authority body, acted rightfully
since it would be blamed for any
future disasters.
The parties have been directed to
go to the negotiating table and file
their terms of agreement to the court
on March 18.
Applicant’s argument
The company, which is located at
Afariwa, near Tema, in November 27,
2018 filed an interlocutory application
asking the court to quash NPA
suspension of its gas operation at the
present location.
The company, per the court
documents, is located between two
schools; Tema International School
and Tema Rich School at Afariwaa
Junction within the Ashaiman
Municipal Assembly and the location
raises safety concerns about the
people in the area.
The Company (Applicant) is in
Court because the National
Petroleum Authority (NPA) has by a
letter dated November 7, 2018
suspended its operation at the said
location on the grounds that the
Company’s operations pose a risk to
two schools located within the
proximity of its activities and the
residents of the area.
Mr Barfo-Bonney, lawyer for the
applicant also contended that the
decision of the Chief Executive
Officer (CEO) of NPA was a
unilateral and that since the NPA has
a board, such directives ought to have
come from the board and not the
CEO.
It also argued that the CEO’s
letter contained no expert advice and
that the applicant had operated for
over 13 years at the site without any
trouble and so there should not be
any reason to warrant revocation of
licence.
Therefore, the court should quash
the suspension of the licence.
Respondent’s claims
Counsel for NPA, Akoto Ampaw,
in his argument, told the court that
what applicant was seeking from the
court was unknown, because they
ought to have come for a judicial
review instead of an interlocutory
application.
On the merits of the application,
he further argued that the application
was unfounded and misleading and
therefore should not be entertained
by the court since the law gives the
NPA the authority to award and also
revoke licences.
On the argument that the NPA
did not seek expert advice prior to
revoking its licence, the counsel said
NPA had the legal backgrounds to do
what it had done and so do not need
experts to act.
Mr Akoto Ampaw further
submitted that the NPA is vested
with the requisite authority to act and
therefore it does not require any
expert body at all times in order to
do its work or performs its functions.
According to Learned Counsel to
accede to the Applicant’s submission
to appoint “experts” is to ask the
NPA to go on a “wild goose chase”
in the performance of its statutory
functions
He said it would be irresponsible
for the NPA not to act until after
disaster had happened.
Akoto Ampaw also argued that T-
Tekpor Energy had been advised to
go and fill their gas cylinders at a
different location and come and
distribute at the present location but
it refused.
He explained that filling the
cylinders at the present location put
the over 800 school children in the
area as well as residents at the risk
and the damage will be higher than
the economic gains of the applicant.
Counsel, therefore, asked the
court to affirm the suspension of T-
Tekpor’s operations as directed by the
CEO of NPA.
By court
The Court, presided over by
Justice Kweku Ackaah-Boafo, in his
ruling, said the applicant failed to
show there was an irreparable damage
of the operations for which reason
the court ought to protect their
interest and restrict NPA from acting.
The court also ruled that the
applicant could not lead any evidence
to properly contest the affidavit in
opposition and the respondent’s
statement of case.
Justice Ackaah-Boafo’s court also
was of the considered view that the
applicant did not show that the NPA
violated its own mandate when it
stopped applicant’s operations and
that T-Turbo failed to demonstrate
the hardship it would suffer.
The court argued that it was rather
the respondent that demonstrated it
had the right to protect and the
authority to prevent risk. It, therefore
refused the application.
“Based on all of the above and
having regard to the competing
claims of the parties and given the
facts and the background of the case
and on the balance of convenience,
and basing myself on the rule as
stated by the Supreme Court per
Kpegah JSC in EKWAM v PIANIM
SUPRA, having regards to the totality
of the evidence so far filed in this
case, I hold that based on the law on
the grant or refusal of injunction as
stated above that it shall not be just
and/or convenient in terms of Order
25 r 1(1) of CI 47or even if the
Court was to invoke the inherent
jurisdiction of the Court to consider
this instant application.
In the light of the foregoing
reasons above, the application for an
order “lifting suspension on
operation of Gas Filling Station and
Supply of Gas Products” is refused,”
the court ruled
Chief Justice warns lawyers over cut-and-paste documents
BY MUNTALLA INUSAH
muntalla.inusah@dailyheritage.com
THE CHIEF Justice (CJ), Sophia
Akuffo, has issued a stern warning to
lawyers and their clients to be wary of
the cut-and-paste syndrome when
initiating an action at the Supreme
Court.
The CJ said the apex court was being
flooded with cut-and-paste writs, which
is an unacceptable practice in court, a
development she urged all lawyers to
avoid.
Justice Akuffo also cautioned
applicants to read carefully the processes
they are to be deposed to before the
court before pending their signatures to
them.
The CJ sounded this caution when
two Members of Parliament on the
ticket of the National Democratic
•Hassan Tampuli
Congress (NDC), Benjamin Kpodo, MP
for Ho Central, and Richard
Quarshigah, MP for Keta, filed a writ
against the finance minister claiming he
was “manipulating funds set aside for
district assemblies.”
When the case was called, the sevenmember
panel chaired by the CJ
lamented that the processes before the
apex court were poorly filed.
Represented by a former Deputy
Attorney-General, Dominic Ayine, who
is also an NDC MP, the applicants
prayed the court for an adjournment to
correct those anomalies, a prayer which
was granted.
The court directed that they file the
amended writ together with the affidavit
within 48 hours at the court’s registry
and return to court on Feb 28 for
hearing.
Background
The two, through lawyer Dr
Ayine, pointed out in the writ that
there is a “subtler” attempt to
reduce the allocation due to the
District Assemblies.
The writ mentions two laws –
Local Governance Act, 2016 (Act
936) and section 7 of the
Earmarked Funds Capping and
Realignment Act – which redefines
what Article 252 Clause 2 of the
1992 constitution calls the ‘total
revenue of Ghana’.
In Section 126(2) of Act 936,
the term is defined as “the revenues
collected by, accruing to the central
government but other than foreign
loans, foreign grants, non-tax
revenue paid into the
Petroleum Holding Fund….”
The plaintiffs maintain that
Parliament’s definition of the term
•Sophia Akuffo, Chief Justice
is unconstitutional and at variance
with the original intent of the drafters
of the 1992 constitution.
They offered in the writ a
definition of total revenue as provided
by the Black’s Law Dictionary, 6th
edition, paragraph 319.
“… a broad and general term,
including all public monies which the
state collects and receives, from
whatever source and in whatever
manner”.
The NDC MPs argue that this
definition makes petroleum revenues a
part of the total revenue of
Ghana. Ghana realised more than
$191m from petroleum in the first half
of 2017.
The challenge by the NDC MPs is
the second time the allocation of 5%
of total revenue to the District
Assemblies has proved contentious.
•Mr Joshua Bortey,
Municipal Chief Executive of
KROMA supervising the
exercise
15-yr-old death
trap at KROMA
relocated
BY MUNTALLA INUSAH
muntalla.inusah@dailyheritage.com
A 15-YEAR-OLD
Electricity Pole which has
been mounted in the middle
of the road connecting the
Cactus Road to the Roof
Top Chop Bar at Nungua in
the newly-created Krowor
Municipal Assembly
(KROMA) has been
removed to stem accidents
on the road.
The Municipal Chief
Executive of KROMA, Mr
Joshua Bortey, who assumed
leadership of the assembly
barely two months ago, led a
team of engineers to the
Mandela School to relocate
the pole.
It is reported that over 50
cars have crashed into the
pole, making it necessary for
it to be removed to prevent
any future crashes.
Mr Bortey expressed
happiness for the swift
manner in which the pole
was relocated and the fact
that the relocation had
happened within the short
period of his administration
as the MCE of the assembly.
The Municipal
Chief Executive of
KROMA, Mr
Joshua Bortey,
who assumed
leadership of the
assembly barely
two months ago,
led a team of
engineers to the
Mandela School to
relocate the pole.