Madam Catherine Afeku who was recently appointed as Minister for Tourism, Arts and Culture pending parliamentary approval by President Nana Akufo Addo is HOT WATERS–as she’s being probed over fraud allegations and a past court judgment which hangs around her neck.
After her appointment, a reported case involving Catherine Afeku, Member of Parliament (MP) for the Evalue-Gwira Constituency in the Western Region, and her husband, Seth Afeku emerged–the two were directed by an Accra High Court to pay $217,464.00 plus 50% interest to a US couple in the fraudulent charges brought against them in 2007.
This report which through a petition by a group calling itself Truth and Accountable Governance (TAG) asking for Mrs Afeku to be dropped has gotten to President Akufo-Addo who has reportedly started probing the matter.
The President is said to have already invited Mrs Catherine Afeku for questioning.
JOY FM says it “has sighted a Memorandum dated January 19, 2017 from her lawyer, Godfred Yeboah Dame to the president on the matter”–and details the memorandum as follows:
The Memorandum, titled, “COURT ACTION BETWEEN HON. CATHERINE AFEKU AND PATRICIA GICKS, BILL GICKS, DAVID THOMAS AND FRANCIS NOKOE” gives into detail developments so far.
In the memo, Godfred Dame conceded that the court granted a number of reliefs against his client but was quick to add that there was no finding of fraud or criminality against her.
Mr Dame explained to the President Akufo-Addo in the Memo that, he found credible evidence and therefore filed a fresh action on November 22, 2013.
According to him, “We proceeded to file an application for an order restraining the enforcement of the earlier judgement dated 30th November, 2007 given in Suit No. 245/06 until the final determination of the new suit. This was granted by the High Court, Accra coram Bright Mensah J. on 5th March, 2014.”
“The suit has been pending in court since, with the various pre-trail processes completed. Same was ready to be heard in November, 2016, when the defendants made an application to submit the video recording forensic examination. We are awaiting the report of the Police Forensic Laboratory,” the Memo read.
On June 5, 2008, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Constitutional and Legal Committee, after an investigation into the matter arrived at the conclusion that she was fit to contest the party’s primaries.
The report: “REPORT OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL AND LEGAL COMMITTEE ON PARTICIPATION IN THE NEW PATRIOTIC PARTY PARLIAMENTARY PRIMARIES IN THE EVALUE-GWIRA CONSTITUENCY BY MADAM CATHERINE AFEKU” was signed Rt. Hon. Peter Ala Adjetey, then Chairman of the committee.
“After an exhaustive examination of this matter we are unanimously of the view that there is nothing in the judgement forwarded to us which should prevent Ms Afeku, on constitutional grounds, from participating in the Parliamentary primaries of the NPP in the Evalue-Gwira constituency,” the report said.