The Accra High Court Criminal Division 4 has granted bail to nine Democracy Hub protesters, including 26-year-old lawyer Elorm Ababio, popularly known as Ama Governor.
The bail was set at GHS 70,000 each.
The other protesters granted bail are: Emmanuel Gyan
Emmanuel Kwabena Addo
Ziblim Yakubu
Oheneba Prempeh
Philip Owusu Kobina
Akisibik Desmond
Von Collie
Sadik Yakubu
The nine individuals are part of a group of 54 protesters arrested by the police during a demonstration against illegal mining, also known as galamsey, on Sunday, September 22.
When the case was called on Monday, October 7, lawyers for the accused first filed a motion to withdraw an earlier application for an abridgement of time, which sought to expedite the hearing.
The court granted the motion and struck out the previous application. Following this, the defense team filed a fresh bail application.
The initial bail request had been denied by an Accra Circuit Court, leading to a two-week remand in police custody for the protesters.
State Attorney Amanda Awadi, representing the prosecution, opposed the new bail application, a stance that came as a surprise given recent directives from the Attorney-General.
Attorney-General Godfred Yeboah Dame, while addressing judges and magistrates last week, had urged the police to conclude investigations swiftly and advised the prosecution to consider relevant bail applications at the next hearing.
“I urge the Police Service to swiftly conclude investigations by the next adjourned dates of the cases involving the prosecution of excesses from recent protests in Accra to exclude by that date, all those against whom sufficient evidence cannot be found to proceed further,” A-G Dame had stated.
Despite the opposition from the prosecution, presiding judge, Justice Comfort Tasiame, found merit in the bail application and granted it.
As part of the bail conditions, the accused are required to deposit their Ghana cards and report to the police weekly until the case is concluded.
Meanwhile, lawyers for other protesters, including notable activists Oliver Barker Vormawor and Felicity Nelson, are still pursuing their clients’ bail applications.
The case continues as the legal team prepares for further hearings.
Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith
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