The Accra Fast Track Court hearing the Quality Grain case, would give judgment on Friday, February 21, next year. Five former public officials including two former ministers in the erstwhile National Democratic Congress government are being tried on charges of conspiracy and causing financial loss of about $22 million to the state.

The two former Ministers are Ibrahim Adam, former Minister of Food and Agriculture and Richard Kwame Peprah, former Minister of Finance. The other accused persons are Dr Samuel Dapaah, former Chief Director of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Dr George Sipah Adjah Yankey, former Director of the Legal Sector, Private and Financial Institutions Division of the Ministry of Finance, and Nana Ato Dadzie, former Chief of Staff.

Mr Justice Dixon Kwame Afreh, Supreme Court Judge, with an additional responsibility for the case as a High Court Judge, announced the date at the court's sitting on Wednesday.

He gave the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) up to January 10, 2003 to file his address.

They have all pleaded not guilty and each of them has been admitted to self-recognisance bail. At its last sitting, the court gave defence counsel up to November 29 to file their written addresses, and the DPP up to December 11 to reply.

At Wednesday's sitting, however, Mr Osafo Sampong, the DPP, told the court that counsel for only two of the defendants - Adam and Dapaah – had beaten the deadline.