Accra, Feb. 8, GNA – An Accra High Court has sentenced Mr Oheneba Boamah Bennie a journalist with Power FM for contempt.
The broadcaster, who is the host of “Battle Ground” programme on the Radio Station, was given 14-day jail term starting from Tuesday, February 8, 2022, for publishing a video on his Facebook wall, which claimed that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo had met with eight justices of the Supreme Court and influenced them ahead of the 2020 election petition.
The Court presided over by Justice Elfreda Dankyi also fined the Broadcaster GH₵ 3000.
Justice Dankyi in her ruling held that Mr Boamah was guilty of the charge against him and that she was charitable with the sentence.
“I have been benevolent,” the Justice stated when counsel for Mr Bennie, Mr Victor Kojoga Adawudu, prayed the court to be charitable.
Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame, the Attorney General, told Court that after the declaration of President Akufo-Addo as the President-elect by the Electoral Commission, Bennie published a video on his Facebook wall, claiming that the President met with eight justices of the Supreme Court, led by the Chief Justice, and had influenced them.
Mr Dame said the video report claimed that the President had used the supposed meeting to influence the justices of the Apex Court in the event of any election petition challenging his re-election as declared by the Commission.
He said the video had asked Ghanaians not to allow the judges of the Supreme Court to destroy the country and charged the Military to stage a coup d’etat.
The A-G made a case that through his publication, Mr Bennie wanted to tell the public that judges, including the justices of the Apex Court, decided on cases not independently but by taking directives from the President.
Mr Dame argued that such an assertion, if allowed to go unpunished, would amount to gross disrespect for the Judiciary, which was a violation of the 1992 Constitution.
According to the A-G, Mr Bennie knew that there was a possibility of a challenge to the Presidential election at the Supreme Court and, therefore, by poisoning the minds of the public against the Court, he wanted to cause disaffection for the Court.
“That the respondent’s disrespect for the Judiciary and the publication of false news intended to bring the Judiciary into disrepute makes him liable to be committed to prison in order to vindicate the undoubted authority of the Judiciary enshrined in Article 125 of the 1992 Constitution,” the A-G said in his affidavit in support.
On December 14, 2020, the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ghana Police Service arrested Mr Bennie for threatening and insulting President Nana Akufo-Addo.
The Presenter was arrested after he honoured an invitation by the Police.
He was cautioned on the offences of offensive conduct conducive to breaches of the peace and publication of false news contrary to sections 207 and 208 (1) respectively of the criminal and other offences Act, Act 29/60.
GNA