[ 2012-04-19 ]

Freed Akwasi Osei Adjei with Dr. Addo Kufuor, a former Defense Minister leaving the court premises

NPP’s Akwasi Osei Adjei acquitted of all charges
A former Foreign Affairs Minister under the former
New Patriotic Party government, Akwasi Osei Adjei,
has been acquitted and discharged of all eight
charges including causing financial loss to the
State in a case concerning the importation of rice
from India into the country.

The High Court also acquitted Daniel Gyimah, the
former managing director of the National
Investment Bank, for the same charges.

The two were accused of importing some 300,000
bags of rice from India between April 2008 and
February 2009, but the prosecution argued 2,997 of
those bags of rice were diverted, leading to a
financial loss of some GH¢1.5 billion to the
State.

The former minister was earlier acquitted of six
of the eight charges but still had to stand trial
for two charges including Conspiracy to Contravene
the Public Procurement Act and Contravention of
the Public Procurement Act.

Speaking to Citi News, the legal counsel for the
defendants, Mr. Godfred Odame said the verdict
given on the case vindicated his earlier stance
that Hon. Adjei’s trial was politically motivated
and had no basis whatsoever.

Commenting on the state prosecution, he said “The
manner in which the prosecution handled the matter
leaves much to be desired. The whole objective of
a trial is to bring a wrongdoer to justice, but
when it is motivated by other motives, it becomes
malicious.”

Source - Citifmonline

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