Businessman Alfred Agbesi Woyome has warned Ghana is likely to pay him a lot more money by the end of the GHC51 million judgement debt case which has been lingering for the past five years.
“Before this case ends, I am envisaging Ghana is going to pay a lot of money to me,” he said at news conference in Accra to address pertinent issues regarding the case which is currently at the Supreme Court.
Although he did not say why Ghana is likely to pay him more money, he claimed the cases regarding the controversial GHC51 million has caused him his businesses, noting he has not work for the last five years.
Mr Alfred Woyome was paid GHC51 million in judgement debt on his claim that he helped in sourcing funds for the construction of stadia for the CAN 2008 Nations Cup hosted by Ghana.
But Ghana’s former Attorney General, Martin Amidu, in 2014 challenged the said payment on grounds that Mr Woyome fraudulently obtained the said amount because he had no contract with the government.
The Supreme Court at the end of the case agreed with Mr Amidu and declared the said payment as unconstitutional on the basis that he had no binding contract with the Ghana government.
The Court consequently ordered the retrieval of the said amount from Mr Woyome but the Attorney General has since managed to retrieve only GHC4 million, causing some Ghanaians to question the commitment of the AG’s office to get the money back.
Last month, the AG’s office discontinued an application it had filed at the Supreme Court that sought permission to orally examine Mr Woyome in open court on the matter but Mr Amidu who was not happy with the AG’s decision filed a similar application which the court last week granted.
But addressing journalists in Accra Friday, Mr Woyome held that the Supreme Court and some Ghanaians have been persecuting him in the matter which has caused him his businesses and affected his person and family.
“I work here and I employ people, you’ve destroyed much of the work, the businesses and everything,” he said noting that he has not worked for the last five years due to the case.
Mr Woyome said he believes that the Supreme Court erred in declaring the payment unconstitutional but said would not blame the Court because it was misled to arrive at such decision, which he has vowed to fight with the last drop of his blood.
“…they [ the judges] have erred because they’ve been misled, and I will insist and press on it until justice is done, because this judgement will be used on anybody because it is a precedent and it must not happen,” he said, and added “I have issues with those judgements”.
He denied claims that he has said he will not refund the money to the State, saying “the issue and the erroneous impression that Alfred Woyome will not pay is not true.”
According to him, he made it clear from the day of the judgement that although he disagrees with the decision, he would still go ahead to refund the money notwithstanding a lawsuit he has filed at the International Court.
“I served notice from the International Court that we are there. I have been advised, which I believe so, that I must make some efforts,” he added.
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