General News of Wednesday, 22 November 2006

Source: GNA

High Court to hear La Traditional Council case on November 27

Accra, Nov. 22, GNA - An Accra High Court will on Monday, November 27, start hearing submissions in the suit brought before it by the La Traditional Council (LTC) against an on-going government project at the La Wireless Station.

Fixing the date at the Court's sitting on Wednesday, Mr Justice Victor Ofoe said due to the national importance attached to the matter, the Court would want to quickly dispose of the case.

Earlier, Mr Nicholas Fredua-Kwarteng, representative of the Attorney-General (A-G), had informed the Court that the A-G's office had filed in the morning in response to those filed by counsel for the LTC. At the beginning of this month, Mr Peter Ala Adjetey, former Speaker of Parliament and native of La, filed an interlocutory application at the Fast Track Court on behalf of the LTC in respect of the Wireless Project.

Mr Adjetey prayed the court to restrain the executors of a government project in connection with Ghana's Golden Jubilee Celebrations slated for March next year from continuing with work pending the final determination of the case by the court. The former Speaker in his application recounted that the government had long abandoned the Wireless Project for which it acquired that tract of land from the LTC.

He said having abandoned the project, the LTC being the caretakers of the land, needed to be informed by government so that there would be re-negotiations, if the land was to be utilized for a new project. A week after the interlocutory application, Mr William Addo filed an Ex-Parte Motion at the High Court on behalf of LTC, hoping that the Court would hear only the side of the Council in the matter without listening to the government side.

However, Mr Justice Ofoe ordered counsel for the Council, to rather bring an Application on Notice so that the government would be served in order for it to have the chance to argue its case.