Montie trio, directors convicted
The two political commentators who threatened the lives of judges of the superior court were yesterday found guilty of contempt of court by the Supreme Court.
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Alistair Tairo Nelson and Godwin Ako Gunn were found guilty of scandalising the apex court and bringing its reputation into disrepute.
Apart from the two, Salifu Maase, alias Mugabe, the host of the programme on which the said comments were made, and the owners of Montie FM, the radio station where the two panellists issued the threats, were also found guilty of contempt of the court.
The contemnors got to know their fate after the court, presided over by Ms Justice Sophia Akuffo, had read their guilty verdict to them one after another.
“You are hereby found guilty of contempt of court for scandalising the court, defying and lowering the authority of this court and bringing the name of the court into disrepute,’’ the court held.
The contemnors were, however, not made aware of the kind of punishment that would be meted out to them, as the court adjourned that to July 27, 2016.
Apologies, regrets and explanations
‘Apologise’, ‘sorry’, ‘regret’ and ‘never again’ were the most repeated words in the courtroom as Maase, Nelson and Gunn and their lawyers took turns to plead with the five-member panel hearing the case to have mercy on them.
Standing with their hands behind their backs and behaving like schoolboys before their teachers, the contemnors, in their remarks, tried to seek favour with the judges in order for their freedoms not to be curtailed.
When Maase was called to give his plea after his charges had been read to him, he stated in a calm voice: “I am liable with a brief explanation.’’
The brief explanation, however, turned into an apology as he tried to convince the court that he had purged himself of the contemptuous statement and would never repeat it.
According to him, after sober reflection on the programme that he hosted, he realised that he had made a grave mistake.
“I, therefore, did damage control by hosting another programme where I was full of praise for the court,” he said.
He also mentioned some of the things he had done to help humanity, such as being a guest speaker at a cancer awareness programme in the United Kingdom (UK).
At that point, the courtroom erupted into laughter when Ms Justice Akuffo asked him to give his explanation because what he was saying sounded more like giving a testimonial.
Alister in the grip of his lawyer
Maase shifted gear and pleaded for mercy, stating that he would never engage in any contemptuous act again.
“What happened was not planned and it was not deliberate. I am deeply sorry and it will not happen again. It will be my first and last,” he pleaded.
“Kpokpogbligbli”
Nelson, for his part, said: “I am liable with lots of regret.’’
The court was thrown into laughter when he explained that he had made the comments on the programme because he had been caught up by a feeling that he could not explain.
He called the feeling “Kpokpogbligbli’’, a word which means ‘one has lost control of oneself’.
“When I listened to myself after the programme, I cried. The disgrace to my family is too much. I, therefore, plead with the audience to plead with the court to have mercy on me,’’ he said.
Gunn too expressed similar sentiments, saying: “I am liable with regret.’’
Montie FM
The apology drama that unfolded was continued by the directors of Montie FM when they were called to give their plea after their charges had been read.
Two directors of the Network Broadcasting Company Limited, the owners of Montie FM, were in court.
They were Mr Edward Addo and Mr Kwesi Atuah, who are also shareholders of the company.
The Company Secretary, Mr Kwaku Bram Larbi, and the owner of the radio frequency, Mr Harry Zarkour, also appeared before the court.
All of them pleaded liable with explanation.
They apologised in their individual capacities and also on behalf of the station and said the station had put in stringent measures to avoid a repeat of the contemptuous comments on its platform.
Mr Addo, in particular, said “the utterances against the judges were despicable and when we heard them we immediately took action and apologised. We also took punitive action against the host and the panellists”.
The lawyers for Maase, Nelson, Gunn and Montie FM also pleaded for mitigation after the court had pronounced the guilty verdict.
Owner of the radio station and frequency
Tape
Earlier, the court had been thrown into a state of disbelief and shock when the comments made by Nelson and Gunn were played in court.
As the tape rolled on, the court became silent and the only notable movements were the shaking of heads in disbelief.
Two tapes were played — one was about the comments made by Nelson and Gunn, as they were spurred on by Mugabe, which lasted 10 minutes, while the second, which also lasted 10 minutes, contained comments by Mugabe in response to the original comments.
Supporters of Salifu Masse, a.k.a Mugabe, in front of the Supreme court. Picture: SAMUEL TEI ADANO & EMMANUEL ASAMOAH ADDAI
Panel
A notable occurrence in the case was the change made to the panel that heard the case.
Mr Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie recused himself after one of his relatives, Mr Kwesi Sainti Baffoe-Bonnie, was presented as one of the owners of Montie FM.
Mr Baffoe-Bonnie’s name was, however, withdrawn by the legal team of the station as owner of the station.
Lead counsel for the station, Nana Ato Dadzie, explained that when the list of directors was being compiled, Mr Baffoe-Bonnie had ceased to be a director of the station.
Mr Justice Gabriel Pwamang replaced Mr Justice Baffoe-Bonnie on the panel.
The rest of the panel were Mr Justice Annin Yeboah, Mr Justice Julius Ansah and Mr Justice A.A. Benin.
