NGO to offer free legal services

…to prisoners on remand

Posted: The Chronicle Tuesday, March 10, 2009

By Charles Takyi-Boadu

An independent Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), the Centre for Human Rights and Civil Liberties (CHURCIL), has offered to provide free legal services to remand prisoners whose warrants have expired but continue to be held in the country’s prisons without any justifiable cause.
This is in view of the fact that most of these remand prisoners cannot afford to engage the services of lawyers to defend them in court during their trial.
In an interview with this paper, the Executive Director of CHURCIL and Accra-based legal practitioner, Kojo Graham, emphasised that this would help to address issues of prisoner rights, prison over population and the problems of pre-trial detention that is currently facing the country.
A couple of years ago, the organisation launched and implemented what it labelled as the ‘Aid-Remand Programme’ (ARP) under the ‘Access 2 Justice’ project. Within the framework of the ‘Access 2 Justice’ project, the ARP falls under the general category of criminal justice and penal reform, which principal objective is to address the issues of prisoner rights, prison over-population and problems of pre-trial detention.
The ARP has been implemented in two parts; the ‘Case Review Plan CRP) and Court Monitoring Plan (CMP).
The CRP has been fashioned to develop and implement a criterion for the review of criminal dockets of remanded prisoners nationwide on a graduated basis.
It has, therefore, put in place a mechanism to monitor new remand cases to propitiously provide the necessary legal assistance.
A key element of the ‘Aid-Remand Project’ is the provision of basic legal services to remand prisoners both within the framework of the CRP and CMP plans.
For this reason, he has proposed the designation of a ‘special’ court to expeditiously deal with the backlog of remand cases.
The organisation has, therefore, drawn a comprehensive plan to help in administering justice through its ‘Access 2 Justice’ project. This involves the sequential development and implementation of a variety of programmes geared towards addressing human rights issues and problems in the areas of criminal justice and penal reform, consumer rights, environmental protection, rule of law, good governance and campaign finance.
The ‘Access 2 Justice’ project which has been ongoing for almost three years now, led to the release of over 50 of such prisoners under the ‘Justice for All’ Project which was initiated by the former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Hon. Joe Ghartey.
The ‘Justice for All’ Project was aimed at bringing justice to the doorsteps of all Ghanaians, especially the vulnerable in society CHURCIL intends to achieve its goals and objectives through the design and implementation of projects and programmes that will facilitate access to justice for the poor and under-privileged in society, with approaches in research and surveys on access to justice issues, legal aid and support services, training and capacity building, stakeholders consultative meetings as well as seminars.
The issue of access to justice for those deprived of their personal and individual liberties is stated in a wide range of international treaties and standards as well as a number of regional declarations by African countries.
In his preface in Professor Andrew Coyle’s seminal book titled ‘A Human Rights Approach to Prison Management’ (2002), the then British Minister of Interior, Jack Straw wrote, “I strongly believe that the way societies treat those who have been deprived of their liberty is a litmus test of commitment to human rights.”
As an organisation committed to the resourceful use of the law as a positive force for the promotion of rule of law, respect for human rights and the protection of fundamental human rights as guaranteed by the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana, Kojo Graham said CHURCIL subscribes to this assertion.
“We believe the success of the ARP will be dependent on the effective coordination of the roles and support of all key stakeholders and participants in the administration of justice in Ghana, namely, the Ghana Prisons Service, the Ghana Bar Association and all legal education institutions”, he emphasised.

Over 1,748 people still languishing in jail

… Without valid warrants

Posted: The Chronicle Monday, March 09, 2009

By Charles Takyi-Boadu
Mrs. Betty Mould-Iddrisu, Attorney-General and Justice MinisterThe Chronicle can report on authority that there are well over 1,748 people languishing in the country’s prisons, without proper or valid warrants for their continuous incarceration.
Available statistics gathered from the Centre for Human Rights and Civil Liberties (CHURCIL), through its occasional institutional visits to the various prison yards, indicates that as at November 15, 2008, the Nsawam Medium Security prison alone had 1, 224 inmates, who were being held without proper or valid warrants to justify their continuous detention, aside 12 other female prisoners who were being held at the same Nsawam Prison for similar reasons.
The Kumasi Central Prison also had 52 inmates, while the Koforidua local prison had 69.
The Ankaful Prison Annex also had 64 inmates, while the Akuse and Ho Central prisons had 63 and 53 inmates respectively, who are being held under similar conditions.
Both male and female put together, the Sekondi Central Prison by then had 60 inmates, whilst that of Winneba and Tarkwa had 42 and 30 respectively.
The rest are Sunyani Prisons 19, Wa Central Prisons 16, Navrongo 11, Yendi 10, Tamale Central Prisons 12, Kete-Krachi Prisons six, Kpando Local Prisons four, and one at the Obuasi Local Prisons.
The situation has arisen as a result of the inability of prosecutors and court officials to either trace or locate dockets covering the cases involved.
This, is in spite of an earlier ultimatum issued by the then Attorney-General (A-G) and Minister of Justice, Mr. Joe Ghartey, and the immediate-past Inspector General of Police (IGP), Patrick Kwarteng Acheampong, in which the two gave the police prosecutors a 14-day ultimatum on October 22, 2008, to renew the expired warrants of remand prisoners, or face disciplinary action.
This was after CHURCIL, a partner in the Joe Ghartey instituted ‘Justice for All Project,’ issued a report after undertaking a six months check on prisoners, in which it noted that over 300 remand prisoners were being held at the Nsawam Medium Security Prison, though their warrants had long expired.
At the time, the A-G gave his word that in the case where the prosecutors were unable to take steps to renew the warrants of such prisonsers within the given period, he was going to take steps to ensure that they were released on bail.
In the light of this, the Executive Director of the CHURCIL and legal whiz kid, Kojo Graham, has demanded that the prisoners be set free, since their continued stay in the prisons did not only amount to an illegality, but also constituted a serious breach of their fundamental human rights, as enshrined in the constitution and other international conventions.
In an interview with this reporter, Mr. Graham reiterated his call for the urgent need to set up special courts, across the length and breadth of the country, to handle and dispense the backlog of cases involving remand prisoners, in order not to aggravate the situation at the already choked prisons in the country.

Koku takes Ato Kwamena Dadzie to cleaners

Posted: The Chronicle Friday, March 6, 2009

By Charles Takyi-Boadu

The seat of government is obviously unhappy with comments emanating from certain quarters, which seek to create the impression that President Mills has deceived Ghanaians with his promise to run and keep a lean government. In response to one of such comments by Ato Kwamena Dadzie of Joy FM's Newspaper Review fame, who has not just cultivated a habit, but equally takes delight in making fun of public figures, the Head of Communications at the Presidency, Koku Anyidoho, did not pull his punches, as he went all out to launch a blistering attack on him. In a statement, Koku noted, "as a professional, I have restrained myself from allowing the ignorance of certain persons and their discourse, to draw me into an ignorance-filled debate." He, however, noted, "when Ato Kwamena Dadzie decides to move the ignorance-filled discourse to absurd levels, it is only proper that I do my utmost best to clear some of the cobwebs in the head of Ato Kwamena Dadzie." In his piece that appeared in The Daily Dispatch on Thursday, March O5, 2009, titled "Team Mills: not so lean", Ato Kwamena Dadzie made some postulations, which Koku said he finds very wonky. Koku wondered why Ato Kwamena Dadzie thinks that by appointing 75 ministers, the President Mills was not keeping to his promise of having a lean government, forgetting that he has cut-off four ministries and not reached the 88 mark, as in the case of the former New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration, led by President Kufuor. Meanwhile, he noted that the President had stated in unequivocal terms that his tenure would have no space for Special Assistants for Ministers and other government officials, as was the case in the previous administration. Whilst indicating that through this, some significant savings would accrue to the government purse, Koku could not, but pose a rhetorical question, "and who says running a lean government is only about the number of ministers?" To him, the rationale behind running a lean government, is to run a lean budget, saying, "so, if His Excellency the President, has decided to have only three vehicles in his convoy; has decided to live at the Castle instead of his Regimanuel Estate home, thereby cutting down his fuel consumption; has decided to significantly slash protocol budget, evidenced by his cancellation of two state banquets so far, and his refusal to embark on useless trips outside the country, Ato Kwamena Dadzie should engage in some cursory mathematics, and he will realise that His Excellency the President is committed to keeping a lean expenditure regime." In leading by example, he emphasised that the President would manage a lean budget at the Presidency, and will not allow his ministers to abuse their privileges. What seemed to bore Koku most, was Ato deriding his personality by claiming that he (Koku) was appointed to the position of Head of Communications at the Presidency as a way of massaging his ego. "Ato Kwamena Dadzie may have an educated opinion on a number of issues but his postulation on the roles of the Head of Communications and Spokesperson pans him out as not having a hold on the distinct and separate functions of myself and Mahama Ayariga," he noted, stressing, "I am not about to be the fly that follows the corpse into the grave, and so 1 will not run through my schedule with a comb." For Ato to know that he is not wearing a 'crown' to 'salve' his 'bruised ego,' as he claimed in his articles Koku said. "I will leave Ato Kwamena Dadzie to educate himself on the role public relations plays in modern day image and information management.He therefore advised Ato to find time to conduct a search through the Google search engine about the White House working structure, stressing that he would wake up to the realisation that the decision of President John Atta Mills to have a Spokesperson and a Head of Communications was nothing new. "I am not running away from the fact that in the heat of the campaign, issues had to be addressed forcefully, and if that is what Ato Kwamena Dadzie refers to as raving and ranting, so be it!" he emphasized, stressing, «indeed, if the clock of time is wound back, and 1 situate myself in the context of the 2008 election, I will do the same things I did without any qualms at all." Koku Anyidoho ended up by extending an invitation to Ato K wamena Dadzie, to pass by his office in his own free time, since he was ready to give him his job description and that of Mahama Ayariga. In the last breath, he noted, «let me state for the records that I am not going to expend my energies responding to needless issues. The President has been given the mandate to build a better Ghana, and in my capacity as the Head of Communications at the Presidency, it is my job, per the heavy responsibility I carry, to support the President to build a better Ghana.