The continuous efforts of Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Godfred Dame, have prevented Ghana from being hit by numerous judgement debts.
His reputation has recently been questioned by Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa who says the Attorney-General is assisting senior New Patriotic Party (NPP) member, Gabby Otchere-Darko to exert influence on Ministry of Finance officials to release GHS 187.3 million to one of his clients, West Blue Company Limited.
In his August 1st edition of the Good Evening Ghana show, broadcast journalist, Paul Adom-Otchere denied Mr Ablakwa’s claims.
According to Mr Adom-Otchere, the Attorney-General cannot be considered to be “bad” as he is “resolving the problem.”
He noted that the works of the Attorney-General show he is a man of integrity. The journalist noted that Ghana has saved millions of cedis and dollars due to the efforts of Godfred Dame.
Mr Paul Adom-Otchere listed some major cases won by the Attorney-General.
NDK’s GH¢1.2bn judgement debt
In June 2021, a legal intervention by the Attorney-General (A-G) prevented the state from being liable for a judgment debt of over GH¢1.2 billion, which was being pursued by NDK Financial Services.
NDK Financial Services had initiated legal proceedings to compel the government to pay them GH¢1.273 billion, claiming it as an outstanding balance along with accrued interest on a judgment debt.
However, following the A-G’s challenge to the legitimacy of these claims, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the state, awarding NDK Financial Services only GH¢14,699.74 with applicable interest.
The dispute in question pertained to a credit facility granted by NDK between 2005 and 2008 to Ahaman Enterprises Limited. The credit was meant for the installation of electrical poles and related materials on behalf of the Ministry of Energy.
Cassius Mining Limited vs Ghana
On August 1, 2023, the Accra High Court granted an injunction against Cassius Mining Limited, an Australian-owned mining company. The injunction was issued following an application by the Attorney-General (A-G) and Minister of Justice, Mr. Godfred Yeboah Dame, at the Commercial Division of the High Court in Accra on July 12.
In the application, the A-G requested an order of interim injunction against the mining company. The purpose of the injunction, as requested by the A-G, is to prevent Cassius Mining Limited from initiating or pursuing any arbitration proceedings outside the jurisdiction of Ghana.
This pertains specifically to the Prospecting Licence Agreement dated December 28, 2016, which was entered into between the Government of Ghana and Cassius Mining Limited. The injunction was granted by Justice Akua Sarpomaa Amoah, who presided over the case.
Earlier this year, the company had initiated an international arbitration against the Government of Ghana at the Permanent Court of Arbitration, seeking approximately US$300 million in compensation. However, this arbitration process was halted by the court due to objections raised by the Attorney-General.
Following the suspension of the arbitration at the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the company had opted for other international arbitration forums to pursue its case against the Government of Ghana.
According to the Attorney-General, on October 12, 2016, Cassius Mining Limited had applied for a prospecting license from the Government of Ghana. This license covered an area of 13.791 square kilometers in the Gbane/Datoko region of Talensi, located in the Upper East Region of Ghana.
Beijing Everyway Traffic & Lighting Technical Company Limited vs Ghana
On February 1, 2023, the Permanent Court of Arbitration rendered a final award on January 30, 2023, in a case involving an investor-state arbitration brought forward by Beijing Everyway Traffic & Lighting Technical Company Limited against the government of Ghana.
The tribunal ruled in favor of a preliminary objection raised by the Attorney-General, Godfred Yeboah Dame, who represented Ghana in the case.
The Claimant had initiated the arbitration based on the provisions of the Treaty between China and Ghana Concerning the Encouragement and Reciprocal Protection of Investments, which was concluded on October 12, 1989.
In its claim, the company sought damages totaling “not less than $55 million.”
Background
On December 16, 2011, Ghana entered into a Master Facility Agreement and related Finance Documents with the China Development Bank to secure a term loan facility for the development of 12 infrastructure projects, including the AITMS Project, in the country.
The AITMS Project was awarded to the Claimant, Beijing Everyway Traffic & Lighting Technical Company Limited, around April 2012. Following this, on September 17, 2012, the Claimant and the Ministry of Roads and Highways of Ghana entered into the EPIC Contract.
Under the terms of the EPIC Contract, Beijing Everyway agreed to supply equipment and offer technical services to the Ghanaian Ministry in relation to the AITMS Project in Accra. The Contract Price was set at US$100 million, and an initial payment of 30% was agreed upon.
Parliament of Ghana approved the EPIC Contract on December 22, 2018. The project’s commencement was set for August 26, 2019, with a completion timeframe of 24 months.
The Claimant asserted that between November 12 and 15, 2019, a delegation from the Ministry of Roads and Highways of Ghana visited their facilities in China to inspect equipment for the AITMS Project. In January 2020, the Department of Urban Roads of Ghana confirmed that the equipment could be shipped to Ghana. Additionally, the Department issued an onsite work permit for the project in January 2020, and the first installations for the project were initiated in February 2020.
During the project’s progress, the Claimant issued two Interim Payment Certificates totaling US$21,995,728 for completed work. By the time of the Notice of Arbitration in February 2021, the Claimant maintained that works with a contractual value of at least US$21,995,728 had been accomplished.
However, a series of events unfolded. In March 2020, the Minister of Finance of Ghana called for discussions regarding the AITMS Project. Subsequent meetings involving various Ghanaian officials led to decisions about the project’s supervision and responsibilities. Notably, the Parliament of Ghana rescinded approval of the EPIC Contract on November 19, 2020, leading to the Claimant’s termination notice on December 30, 2021.
The Claimant alleged that Ghana’s actions constituted a breach of the China-Ghana Investment Treaty, including unlawfully expropriating the Claimant’s investment and violating the Umbrella Clause.
Ghana contended that its actions were in the interest of national security and that the Tribunal lacked jurisdiction over the Claimant’s claims. The dispute centered around differing interpretations of the Treaty and the legality of Ghana’s actions within that context.
$15.3m Heritage Imperial ‘galamsey’ judgment against State
The High Court in Kumasi on May 2, 2023, overturned a $15.3 million judgment that was previously ruled in favor of Heritage Imperial, a mining company.
The Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, initiated the application to nullify the judgment, asserting that the high court lacked jurisdiction to address the case.
In 2018, Heritage Imperial took legal action against the Ghanaian government due to the intrusion on its mining site in the Ashanti Region and the confiscation of its excavators by the Inter-Ministerial Task Force on Illegal Mining.
Following a comprehensive trial, Justice Samuel Diawuo, presiding over the case, determined on July 30, 2020, that the government’s actions were unlawful. Consequently, the court ordered the government to pay $15,304,714.20, the equivalent value of the machinery and equipment seized, or its present value in Ghanaian Cedis. The court also awarded general damages of GH¢500,000 and imposed costs of GH¢100,000 against the government.
However, when Godfred Yeboah Dame assumed the role of Attorney-General in 2021, he moved to set aside the judgment, arguing that the court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case. He later revealed that he had learned about the judgment through a news program on Joy FM, Newsfile, and hadn’t been aware of it during his tenure as Deputy Attorney-General.
Mr. Dame presented the application at the High Court in Kumasi on July 23, 2021. He highlighted several procedural discrepancies in the plaintiff’s case and contended that the plaintiff’s initiation of the legal action did not adhere to the obligatory statutory provisions of the State Proceedings Act, 1998 (Act 555), rendering it unlawful.
Furthermore, he asserted that the order for the government to pay $15,304,714.20 lacked a valid basis, as there was no endorsement on the writ of summons issued in support of the action.