An Accra based legal practitioner, Mr Kweku Paintsil, has once again expressed disgust about the way legal practitioners are being treated during the lockdown as announced by the president. The senior lawyer yesterday took his own association – Ghana Bar Association – to the cleaners for failing to defend the interest of members when the government failed to give them free passage to the courts during the period of the lockdown.
In the second article he has written and released exclusively to The Chronicle, Mr Paintsil said the High Court Complex in Accra has been locked and that lawyers are not allowed inside even though some of the legal practitioners have cases to attend to. The following is his short article:
I am just returning from the Court Complex, Accra, and it is totally under a lockdown and lockout.
Nobody, including lawyers, are allowed to go inside by “Order From Above”. Calls to the Registrar of the Criminal Court goes through but he doesn’t pick (deliberately).
In the meanwhile we have a client whose previous bail (having been rescinded) was restored and admitted to his previous bail terms and conditions by the High Court since last week.
Even though the Order was served on the Nsawam Prison authorities they refuse to release him, claiming that the accused requires be taken to Court to execute a fresh bail bond. However, they are under instructions not to take any inmate to Court.
A petition to the Director of Prisons to permit the accused execute a fresh bail bond has characteristically gone unheeded, without even the courtesy of an acknowledgment.
And now this: the ” whole” court complex closed completely without access to lawyers and the Registrar refuses to pick his calls. Indeed, no possibility of entering to file any process.
Quo Vadis Human Rights in Ghana under a period of lockdown?
Are we safe?
Kweku Y Paintsil, Esq.
The post Lawyer Kweku Paintsil fumes over lockout of High Court Complex appeared first on The Chronicle Online.
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