Former Attorney-General Godfred Dame breaks silence on attacks by lawyer Thaddeus Sory, calling them obsessive and provocative.

Former Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, has issued a sharp and pointed response to what he describes as a consistent pattern of personal and professional attacks from fellow legal practitioner Thaddeus Sory.

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Alfred Ababio Kumi with Alexander Afenyo-Markin after his release

A youth activist of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and former parliamentary aspirant, Alfred Ababio Kumi, popularly known as Adenta Kumi, has been released from the custody of the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB).

His release on Friday night followed high-level discussions between security officials and NPP leaders, led by Minority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin.

Adenta Kumi was arrested on Friday, May 23, 2025, and charged with the publication of false news, as confirmed by his lawyer, Clement Opoku Gyamfi.

The charges stemmed from comments he made on his X (formerly Twitter) account and during a radio interview regarding a petition he submitted to the President of Ghana.

This petition calls for the dissolution of the committee currently investigating the Chief Justice. In the petition, Adenta Kumi alleged misconduct by members of the judiciary that he claims could compromise the integrity of the inquiry.

Specifically, he stated that on May 15, 2025, after the committee’s inaugural sitting, Justices Pwamang and Adibu-Asiedu—along with Supreme Court Justice Yonny Kulendi—were seen dining with Thaddeus Sory, counsel for petitioner Daniel Ofori, at Santoku Restaurant in the Airport Residential Area of Accra.

Adenta Kumi further alleged that the group was overheard discussing matters related to the ongoing petition. The case has garnered significant political attention due to its implications for judicial independence and freedom of expression.

The party’s General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong, argued that his arrest was politically motivated, while expressing outrage over the handling of Kumi’s arrest during an interview on Citi Prime News.

“We believe it is linked to the petition until the NIB provides a different explanation, as that is what we all know—that he submitted a petition to the President this week and has yet to receive an acknowledgment,” he stated.

Kodua Frimpong also claimed that Kumi’s wife suffered a miscarriage following a dramatic dawn raid by state security operatives during his arrest.

By Prince Fiifi Yorke

Bernard Antwi-Boasiako

The Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, is expected to report to the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) today, Monday, May 26, 2025, following a dramatic and controversial incident involving heavily armed, masked security operatives at his residence last Friday.

The incident, which unfolded at Wontumi’s Daaban residence in Kumasi, has sparked widespread political uproar, with several members of the NPP accusing the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) and President John Mahama of using state security for political persecution.

The security operatives, made up of personnel from the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) and the Ghana Police Service, reportedly stormed Wontumi’s home in what witnesses described as a Rambo-style operation, creating panic among residents and attracting large crowds, including NPP supporters.

According to eyewitness accounts, the security personnel attempted to apprehend Wontumi as he arrived at his home in a vehicle.

However, the NPP Chairman resisted the arrest, demanding that the officers produce a valid arrest warrant. When they failed to do so, he entered his house and locked the gates, effectively shutting the operatives out.

In an emotional radio interview shortly after the incident, Wontumi accused President Mahama and the NDC of orchestrating a political witch-hunt aimed at silencing him.

“This is nothing but a politically motivated move to intimidate me because of my stance and my influence in the Ashanti Region,” he said, and added, “Ghanaians must rise up against these unlawful tactics by the government.”

Former Manhyia North MP

Former NPP Member of Parliament (MP) for Manhyia North, Collins Owusu Amankwah, provided crucial details regarding the timeline of events and Wontumi’s response to a prior security invitation.

Speaking on Accra-based Asempa FM, Mr. Owusu Amankwah revealed that Wontumi had already communicated with the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), indicating that he was unwell and proposing to appear before the security agencies on Monday, May 26.

“He responded to the CID on May 21st that he wasn’t well and would honour the invitation today. But rather than respond or acknowledge that communication, they sent masked men to storm his home,” Owusu Amankwah stated.

He described the action as a gross abuse of state power, and warned that it sets a dangerous precedent. “What kind of mindset leads a government to authorise masked men to carry out such an operation? If you don’t have a murderous mentality, why do you wear masks and move without identification or name tags?” he queried, intimating, “These are known NDC branch executives in masks, hiding behind state security.”

According to the former MP, such actions violate the Security and Intelligence Act, which outlines clear protocols for lawful arrests, including the need for officers to identify themselves and present a warrant from a competent court.

“If someone shows up masked and without a name tag or warrant, citizens have every right to resist arrest,” he stressed.

He further cited concerns with the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC), arguing that even financial investigations must follow international protocols.

“According to the 40 recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force, charges must be clear before any arrest is made. What is happening now is an abuse of every standard,” he lamented.

The failed arrest attempt and the planned appearance at the NIB today have drawn considerable attention, with party supporters gathering in solidarity and civil society groups raising concerns about the growing politicisation of security institutions.

Meanwhile, Wontumi’s legal team has indicated that he is cooperating fully with the authorities and will honour any lawful invitation. However, they insist that Friday’s raid was unlawful and smacks of political intimidation.

By Ernest Kofi Adu

Professor Ameyaw-Akumfi is the former Board Chairman of GIIF

Professor Christopher Ameyaw-Akumfi, the former Board Chairman of the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF), has pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against him by the Attorney General in connection with the $2 million SkyTrain project saga.

Professor Ameyaw-Akumfi, who is standing trial as the second accused person at the Accra High Court, pleaded not guilty to charges of willfully causing financial loss to the state, intentional dissipation of public funds, and conspiracy to commit a crime.

His appearance in court on Monday, May 26, 2025, for the formal taking of his plea follows his failure to appear on two prior occasions. His earlier absence was attributed to medical grounds, after he was reportedly rushed to the hospital on May 20, 2025.

The state slapped Prof Ameyaw-Akumfi and one other Solomon Asamoah, the former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GIIF with six charges.

The charges include conspiracy to commit a crime, to wit, willfully causing financial loss to the state, and willfully causing financial loss to the state.

The others are; conspiracy to commit a crime, to wit, intentional dissipation of public funds; and intentional dissipation of public funds; and intentional dissipation of public funds.

Background:

Before the arrest and the filing of the charges, Attorney General, Dr Dominic Akuritinga Ayine, indicated that both Asamoah and Professor Ameyaw-Akumfi would be prosecuted, with some board members offering to testify as prosecution witnesses.

He stated that it has been established that the $2 million payment made by the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund was unauthorised, with only former CEO Solomon Asamoah and former Board Chairman, Professor Ameyaw-Akumfi, aware of and involved in the transaction.

“In respect of the Sky Train matter, we have completed investigations and will be filing charges, hopefully next week. We have established that the two million United States dollars (US$2,000,000.00) paid by the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund was paid without board approval.

“The only persons who knew and acted on the payment were the former CEO, Mr Solomon Asamoah, and the former Board Chairman, Professor Ameyaw-Akumfi. Both will be charged next week. Some of the board members have offered to testify as witnesses for the prosecution, and I am considering their offers,” the AG said while briefing the media at a recent press briefing.

MAG/MA

The Member of Parliament for Upper Manya Krobo, Bismark Tetteh Nyarko, has credited the recent stability of Ghana’s cedi to the strong economic fundamentals put in place by President John Mahama and the Finance Minister, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson.

Speaking on the cedi gains on the Channel One Newsroom on Sunday May 25, Nyarko highlighted the resilience of the cedi, stating, “The cedi is doing pretty well, and like we’ve all been told previously, when the fundamentals are strong, the cedi will reflect the same.”

He attributed this positive performance to prudent economic policies and stabilisation strategies initiated under Mahama’s leadership.

Nyarko further emphasised that the passage of the GoldBod legislation has also played a crucial role in ensuring the cedi’s stability.

“You can also remember that recently we passed a law to establish the GoldBod. The GoldBod has also contributed to the stability of the cedi, and I think I expect more of this in the coming year,” he stated.

Justin Kodua Frimpong

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has condemned the arrest of Alfred Ababio Kumi, popularly referred to as Adenta Kumi, by the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), describing it as an act of intimidation.

The General Secretary of the party, Justin Kodua Frimpong, said he received a distress call from Mr. Kumi early Friday morning, during which Kumi said about 20 armed men had surrounded his house, demanding that he come out, although he could not identify them.

According to Mr. Kodua, by the time he arrived at Adenta Kumi’s residence, Mr. Kumi had already been taken away by the operatives.

“It’s appalling that officers, whoever they may be, would act in this manner. What crime has Adenta Kumi committed?” Mr. Kodua questioned in an interview with the media.

“This is someone who, acting as a responsible citizen, submitted a petition to the President after observing what he believed to be wrongdoing. He never received a response, only to be forcibly picked up without explanation,” he stated.

“Are they trying to put fear into him? Are they trying to intimidate him? If someone has filed a petition, the right course of action is to invite them, not to storm their home without a warrant,” he added.

The former parliamentary aspirant of the party was arrested by operatives of the National Intelligence Bureau following his submission of a petition to President Mahama, calling for the dissolution of the committee investigating the suspended Chief Justice, Gertrude Esaaba Torkornoo.

By Ebenezer K. Amponsah

Godfred Yeboah Dame and Thaddeus Sory

Former Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, has taken a swipe at private legal practitioner, Thaddeus Sory, describing his constant unprovoked attacks on him as a sign of obsession and bewildering jealousy that need healing.

According to him, Mr. Sory’s predilection to comment on the slightest thing he (Dame) does or says is not lost on the public, observing that his fellow lawyer, for some time now has been expending enormous energy, time and resources to launch public attacks on him in relation to his work.

“I live in your mind rent free. Indeed, your obsession with Godfred Dame is bewildering and needs healing,” he stated.

Mr. Dame’s statement was in response to a strong-worded post Mr. Sory made on social media platform, Facebook, in which he described the former Attorney General as ‘incongruous cry baby.’

Mr. Sory, on the other hand, was responding to Mr. Dame’s suggestion that the three lawyers representing the three petitioners calling for the removal of the Chief Justice – Tsatsu Tsikata who is a known National Democratic Congress (NDC) lawyer, Mr. Sory, who is the Speaker of Parliament’s lawyer, and Oliver Barker-Vormawor, who is said to have ties with the NDC, is a clear indication that the whole process was an NDC orchestration.

Mr. Sory debunked this assertion and indicated that he is a professional who is bound by legal ethics to represent anyone who retains him, subject only to certain exceptions, adding that he had represented some New Patriotic Party (NPP) clients in the past.

He then went on to make certain allegations against Mr. Dame, including a suggestion that his legal acumen suddenly improved just because he became Attorney-General.

Dame Fires Back

But Mr. Dame, in a sharp rebuttal, refuted the claims made by Mr. Sory, describing them as being fueled by jealousy and obsession.

Mr. Dame highlighted his stellar legal career prior to his appointment as Deputy Attorney General and later Attorney General, recalling innumerable victories he had recorded in courts across the country.

Mr. Dame even recalled a case which he worn at the High Court in which Mr. Sory was opposing counsel between 2007 and 2009, and also lost same on appeal at the Court of Appeal.

“In all humility, I say, as a testament to the strength of Ghana’s judicial system, that the record of the consistent success I enjoyed in the courts in innumerable high-profile cases I conducted between 2003 and 2007 (as a relatively junior lawyer) and between 2009 and 2017 (when I was not the Attorney-General but a lawyer who was a member of the opposition), is there for all to verify. It is this independence of Ghana’s judiciary that I see is threatened by recent happenings in Ghana, and which I seek to protect. You and the NDC’s desperation to churn out a false narrative now will not change the situation,” Mr. Dame pointed out.

The former Attorney General also indicated that the legal acumen Mr. Sory suggested he found during his time as Attorney General, was not limited to the domestic territories of Ghana, as he deployed same to the successful defence of Ghana’s interests in many international arbitration cases and foreign courts, saving the nation billions of United States Dollars.

“In point of fact, in my tenure as Attorney General, Ghana emerged victorious in all the international arbitrations my humble self and my able deputies led the Office to conduct without the aid of foreign counsel,” he stressed.

Mr. Dame also clarified that he had never said that Mr. Sory has not represented NPP clients, as he is aware of Mr. Sory’s association with NPP clients, particularly, when he was a junior to Ambrose Dery in Dery & Co.

“The irrefutable point I make now is that Mr. Tsikata was President Mahama’s lawyer in the last election petition in 2020. You are the current Speaker of Parliament’s lawyer and double as lawyer for a person who is aggrieved by judgments delivered by the Chief Justice against him in his attempt to recover some gargantuan money from Ecobank. If you do not find it “incongruous” that the lawyers of the heads of two arms of government have teamed up to remove the lady Chief Justice of the Republic from office, I cannot fault you,” he added.

Mr. Dame also pointed out that his call for judicial independence did not begin today, as he did same even when he was the Attorney General.

He also observed Mr. Sory asserting his duty to ‘represent anyone who retains him’, wondering whether he (Dame) does not owe the same duty.

Mr. Dame concluded by hoping this will be his only and ever response to Mr. Sory, adding that “I will continue to ignore all your provocative comments.”

BY Gibril Abdul Razak

File photo of traders selling on pavements

Traders at the Central Business District (CBD) of Accra have defied the red line initiative which has been reintroduced by the Mayor of Accra, Michael Kpakpo Allotey, to peddle their business on pavements and unauthorised spots in the area.

The initiative which was originally implemented under former Mayor Alfred Oko Vanderpuije, according to AMA, has been reintroduced with stronger enforcement strategy and deeper collaboration with stakeholders, particularly market women.

However, in a video report shared on CITI FM’s X account on Monday,26, 2025, a trader reacting to the development explained why she has returned to the streets to sell.

According to her, trading on the streets is their main source of livelihood and hence is forced to return to do business.

“This place is our office. This is where we make a living. So, if you ask us to stay off the pavement without giving us alternative places to trade, we have no choice but to return to the pavements to trade.

“Even some of the AMA officials have their wives among us who are also engaged in trade here. So, it will be difficult to keep us off the pavements,” he said.

Watch video below

Traders in Kaneshie and parts of Accra’s CBD are back in unauthorized spaces—just days after a decongestion exercise. Some tell Citi News’ Fauzu Masawudu they have no alternative trading spots.

What’s the long-term solution?#CitiNewsroom pic.twitter.com/8iyajqpCgJ

— CITI FM 97.3 (@Citi973) May 24, 2025

The first phase of the decongestion exercise led by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) in partnership with the Korle Klottey Municipal Assembly (KoKMA) began on Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in the Central Business District of Accra.

The exercise forms part of a broader initiative to reduce congestion, enforce city by-laws, and improve sanitation in the capital, initially targeted key areas around the AMA Head Office—specifically Kinbu Road to Railways, ECG Junction to the King Tackie Tawiah Statue, and Opera Square to Adabraka, identified as hotspots for street hawking and human and vehicular traffic.

However, in a viral video sighted by GhanaWeb on May 21, 2025, some traders were seen displaying their goods on the pavements in defiance of the directive.

Meanwhile, AMA has indicated that the second phase of the decongestion exercise will cover Wato Junction to King Tackie Tawiah, Cow Lane, Rawlings Park, Timber Market, and Kwame Nkrumah Circle.

VPO

Meanwhile, catch up on the concluding part of the story of Fort William, where children were sold in exchange for kitchenware, others, below:

The Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, is expected to report to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service today, Monday, May 26, 2025.

His appearance follows a failed attempt by a combined team of National Security and police officers to arrest him at his residence last Friday, May 23.

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Former Member of Parliament for Madina, Alhaji Amadu Sorogho, has expressed concerns regarding the methods employed by security personnel during the attempted arrest of Bernard Antwi Boasiako, the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), also known as Chairman Wontumi.

In an interview with Channel One TV, Mr. Sorogho emphasized that the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) could have approached the situation more appropriately, suggesting that legal channels, such as obtaining a court order, would have been preferable rather than deploying a significant number of heavily armed officers to Mr. Boasiako’s residence.

“Wontumi was invited, and he refused to honour the invitation. I am not in favour of so many armed men going after one person. To me, it is not because the state is more powerful than the individual. There are so many avenues you can use to call the person, and if the person doesn’t come, you can even go to court,” he stated.

While acknowledging that the security agencies may have acted within their legal framework by obtaining a warrant, Sorogho expressed concerns about the execution of the operation, particularly regarding the necessity and proportionality of the force used.

“But I am happy that they went with the warrant. Maybe the mode is what I am talking about, but not the actual deed itself,” he added.

Chairman Wontumi is scheduled to appear before the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service today, Monday, May 26, 2025. This follows an unsuccessful attempt by a joint team of National Security operatives and police officials to apprehend him at his residence on Friday, May 23.

Source: Adomonline