Dampare’s Lawyers Accuse Ad hoc Committee Chairman Of Prejudicial Comments
Lawyers for the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr George Akuffo Dampare, have accused Parliament’s ad hoc committee chairman of prejudicial comments in the leaked audio tape probe.
The IGP’s lead counsel, Kwame Gyan, said that Samuel Atta Akyea had been noted for passing prejudicial comments after every sitting instead of maintaining impartiality.
He recounted a specific incident where the chairman publicly stated that an extended tape submitted by Bugri Naabu, a former Northern Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), had been doctored despite not being played publicly.
“The chairman is operating as if he is a sole commissioner, and we are going to use all necessary legal means at the hearing not to accept this. The chairman has his own agenda. Normally, what happens is that anytime after sitting while we go home quietly, he will gather the press and grant interviews.
“After one sitting, he went out there and said the extended tape which was submitted by Bugri Naabu had been doctored, a tape that has not been played for anybody to hear; he says it has been doctored, very prejudicial comments,” he said in a Joy News interview monitored by theghanareport.com.
While the IGP’s legal team had previously exercised restraint for Parliament and committee members, Mr Gyan stressed that the team would take a more assertive approach from now.
He added that the team will resist any attempt to bring any extraneous witnesses whose testimonies are irrelevant to the case.
Mr Gyan is not the only person who has raised concerns about the chairman’s posture and utterances. A political science lecturer at the University of Ghana, Professor Ransford Gyampo, demanded the chairman recuse himself from the sitting.
Professor Gyampo explained that the chairman’s body language, line of questioning, and recurring remarks all seemed to suggest a predisposition against the IGP.
IGP Dampare was hauled before Parliament’s ad-hoc committee after a leaked tape plotting to remove him from office surfaced on social media.
Three police officers, COP George Alex Mensah, Superintendent George Asare, Superintendent Emmanuel Gyebi, and Daniel Bugri Naabu, a former Northern Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), have been implicated in the alleged IGP tape.
The said individuals have already given their testimonies regarding the said subject matter.
While Mr Naabu confirmed the content of the tape, COP Alex Mensah and Superintendent George Asare have denied the content, saying portions have been “edited”.
COP Mensah, for instance, claimed that the tape had been doctored and did not accurately reflect the content of the original conversation with former NPP Northern Regional Chairman Bugri Naabu.
Meanwhile, the committee is expected to resume sitting today, Tuesday, October 10.