The Cape Coast High Court has granted bail to Louisa Buabeng, the sole independent candidate in the Effutu parliamentary elections.
The bail condition was varied by the Cape Coast High Court presided over by His Lordship John Mark Nuku Alifo following an application by counsel for the accused person and her campaign coordinator.
Instead of the earlier condition of a “GHC50,000 each and three sureties with one of the sureties being a serving police officer within the Winneba jurisdiction and within the rank above a chief inspector” as set by the Winneba District Court presided over by Her Worship Josephine Abigail Fosuaa Appiah, the Cape Coast High Court according to court documents sighted by 3News.com is asking for “GHC50,000 and one surety for each of the accused persons.
Their bail conditions according to the court is in line with provisions under Section 96 (1) (b) of Act 30, which states that “the Bail Bond shall be executed at any of the four places stated below:
(i) The Registry of the Cape-Coast High Court.
(ii) The Registry of the Winneba High Court.
(iii) The Registry of the Winneba District Court.
(iv) The Winneba Police Station or any Police Station where the two accused persons are currently being held before a Chief Inspector or above or the Officer-In-Charge of the said Police Station.
The independent candidate, Louisa Buabeng, and her campaign coordinator, Dauda Murtalib Moukazil were held in police custody for failing to meet the bail conditions set by the Winneba District Court presided by Her Worship Josephine Abigail Fosuaa Appiah on Monday, December 2, 2024.
The two accused persons even after proving that they could satisfy the other conditions of GHC 50,000.00 each and provided two sureties could not fulfill the third condition of having to provide a serving police officer with the rank above Chief Inspector and serving within the Effutu jurisdiction.
Their counsel, Jennifred Maurice Adjei, even though sought to draw the judge’s attention to the impracticability of the condition, was unsuccessful. He therefore had to seek relief from a higher court.
Lawyer Jennifred Maurice told 3News.com that “the accused persons have been freed and expected to be reuniting with their families”
Dauda Murtalib Moukazil was prosecuted for “possessing others’ voters ID cards” while the independent candidate was prosecuted for “abetment”.
The independent candidate was arrested while in court to seek an injunction on the December 7 parliamentary elections for the “leaking of” her “nomination forms by the Electoral Commission” days after filing same with the Commission.
She was rearrested by police and prosecuted with her campaign coordinator on December 28, 2024 after police broke into the latter’s residence and found some voters ID cards with him after an individual petitioned the police to inquire whether she had appropriately secured the signatures of the persons who nominated her as a parliamentary candidate.
Read also:
Independent Candidate for Effutu granted GHC50k bail
By Akwasi Addo
Source:
3news.com
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