An Accra High Court has adjourned the case between Fidelity Bank and Bright Simons, Vice President of IMANI Africa, to July 4, 2024.
Fidelity Bank’s counsel, Dr. Dominic Ayine, was expected to move a motion to strike out some of Simons’ pleadings. However, the defense lawyer, Samuel Alesu, stated that they had not filed an affidavit in opposition due to the suit’s nature.
Lawyers representing Dr. Ayine requested additional time to file further documents in support of their motion. Justice Ellen Mireku, presiding judge, instructed Fidelity Bank’s lawyers to submit their documents by June 3. Simons’ lawyers must file their corresponding documents by June 20, with the hearing set to continue on July 4, 2024.
Background
Fidelity Bank sued Bright Simons on March 25, 2024, following a tweet in which Simons claimed the bank sold dollars in a sweetheart deal to the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), potentially causing losses. Represented by Dominic Ayine, a National Democratic Congress (NDC) MP for Bolgatanga East, Fidelity Bank accused Simons of disseminating false and misleading information.
Simons’ comments were based on a tweet by Benjamin Boakye of the Africa Center for Energy Policy (ACEP), stating that the sale rate was 13.95, whereas the Bank of Ghana’s reference rate was below 11.5 at the time of the transaction in October 2023. Simons, represented by Audrey Grey, a corporate law firm in Accra, entered his appearance on March 28, 2024, and filed his defense the following month.
Fidelity Bank’s amended suit claims that Simons’ tweet was false, mischievous, and disparaging. In his defense, Simons rejected these allegations, insisting that the figures used in his and Boakye’s tweets were derived from ECG’s financial department and submitted to the Cash Waterfall Mechanism committee at the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC).
The ECG acknowledged the figures but described them as estimates. Simons’ representatives countered that the document continued to be used months after the transaction, with data labeled as “actuals.”
Fidelity Bank’s amended writ included what it stated were the accurate exchange rates used, which were lower than 13.95. In response, Simons counter-sued, asking the court to declare the deal a sweetheart deal, alleging it violated the Public Procurement Act and Ghana’s energy policies. He claimed a conflict of interest involving Fidelity Bank’s Board Secretary, who also sits on ECG’s Board.
Fidelity Bank moved to dismiss Simons’ counter-suit, arguing it lacked reasonable cause and was an abuse of judicial process. Simons’ lawyers opposed this, asserting that the counter-claims were directly linked to his defense and were in the public interest to expose irregular deals. They urged the court to declare the deals illegal and compel Fidelity Bank to refund profits above the Bank of Ghana reference rate.
Dr. Ayine opposed Simons’ counter-suit, arguing it was intended to waste the court’s time. The substantive issues could not be heard on May 20, 2024, due to incomplete affidavits, leading to the adjournment to July 4, 2024.