Richard Jakpa, the third accused in the ambulance trial currently ongoing in an Accra High Court, took the witness box for the second time on June 20, 2024.
The explosive first cross-examination took place two days prior when Jakpa faced questions fielded by the Director of Public Prosecution, Yvonne Attakorah Obuobisa.
The first day saw the accused answering questions on his history in the military, issues around an infamous WhatsApp chat between him and Attorney-General and how he first met the A-G.
Attorney-General Godfred Dame and his deputy Alfred Tuah-Yeboah were both in court during the first day.
Day two also witnessed a number of key outcomes, among others the admission of 68 WhatsApp chats by the prosecution to counter an edited version presented by Jakpa to the court.
Jakpa spoke about how his now soured relationship with Dame evolved and the role of his cousin and Supreme Court Justice, Yonny Kulendi, in linking him up with the A-G.
GhanaWeb teases the main points from Day 2 of Jakpa in the witness bos
68 WhatsApp chats admitted
According to a report by thelawplatform.online, Justice Afia Serwah Asare-Botwe, the Court of Appeals judge presiding over the case, indicated that she was admitting the messages on the grounds of completeness of evidence, fairness to the trial, and reciprocity.
This was after the lawyer for the 3rd accused objected to the tendering of the WhatsApp messages as evidence during proceedings on Thursday, June 20, 2024.
Jakpa’s lawyer, Thaddeus Sory, indicated that his objection was on the grounds of relevance and authenticity.
“Relying on section 52 of NRCD 232, Evidence Act (1972), Mr. Sory said the admission of the messages would pose a danger of unfairly prejudicing the trial. He said there are missing parts of the conversation between the 3rd accused, Richard Jakpa, and the A-G and therefore does not give a complete picture of the correspondence between the two.
“He also argued that the processes already filed in court suggest that the A-G did not read the messages and thus the chat is not relevant for the purposes the A-G wishes to have the WhatsApp conversation tendered,” part of the report reads.
Broken promise and animosity towards Dame
Businessman Richard Jakpa has revealed the reasons behind his intense animosity towards Attorney-General Godfred Yeboah Dame, referring to him as his ‘sworn enemy’.
Jakpa, the third defendant in the ambulance procurement trial, recounted a secret meeting with the Attorney-General, which was intended to result in his discharge from the trial.
However, despite the agreement, he was added to the list of accused persons and required to present his defense.
During cross-examination by the DPP, Jakpa claimed he had provided documents to the Attorney-General that were subsequently used to strengthen the prosecution’s case.
The DPP, however, refuted his claims, stating that the documents in question had been submitted by the prosecution five months before Jakpa’s meeting with the A-G.
Jakpa also described a promise made by Godfred Yeboah Dame at the residence of his cousin, Justice Yonny Kulendi, which was not fulfilled.
Kulendi links elaborated upon
The name of Justice Yonny Kulendi has been a permanent fixture in Jakpa’s narrative, from the audio tape he caused to be released of a phone conversation with Dame through to calls triggered by the apex court judge and meetings at his home between Jakpa and Dame.
Jakpa said a promise to ensure his acquittal was made the home of the Justice but Dame flipped on his word, which birthed deep animosity in him for the A-G.
“I wasn’t surprised by the ruling (to open defense) because I’m familiar with the government’s tactics of not honouring agreements with perceived political adversaries,” Jakpa stated.
He recounted messaging Justice Kulendi about being asked to open his defense, to which Kulendi suggested that Dame would contact him if possible.
“The night I learned of the broken promise was the night I declared war on the A-G,” Jakpa declared.
He expressed his determination to use his ‘underworld skills’ against Dame’s legal expertise, indicating a personal battle regardless of the trial’s outcome.
Jakpa emphasized that the conflict was not just about his potential incarceration but also about the pain, reputational damage, and loss he has suffered, which he believes cannot be compensated by an acquittal alone.
“And I told the two of them that he, A-G is a lawyer, he is using his law skills and knowledge to take my liberty away from me unjustly and I’m also going to use my underworld skills to pay him and deal with him. I said use what you know best in your law and I’ll also use what I know best on the street and will see who will survive.
“So, I am concerned there is a war between the two of us whether I’m jailed or acquitted. Because he’s trying to jail me and take my liberty as a citizen, he has caused me pain, destroyed my reputation and stripped me of everything I have worked for over decades and that cannot be paid by an acquittal because of the judge that is adjudicating the trial.
“He and my cousin tried to calm me down, but the battle line had already been drawn.” Jakpa told the court.
ghanaweb.com
