ACC MATTER: DEFENCE MAKES ‘NONSENSICAL OBJECTIONS’. BY: ALIMAMY LAHAI KAMARA Sitting High Court judge, in the matter between the State versus Peter Conteh and 2 others (ACC matter), has described the defence as making ‘nonsensical objections’. According to the trial judge, ‘the objections are of no moment and are meaningless’. Justice Paul says the defence lawyer appears to be impressing his client or the gallery instead of earning the matter due attention and making right objections. He says he will not record some of the objections since they are out of place. The defence lawyer, it appears, takes an offence in what seems to be a headlong altercation between the two ‘learned colleagues’. Lawyer Lansana Dumbuya, speaking on behalf of the defence, says the judge’s description as nonsensical objections implies that ‘he is not fit to represent the accused and that he is incompetent’. Feeling embarrassed, it seems, the lawyer makes an application for withdrawal of his representation for the accused person. His client, Peter Conteh, caught between the devil and the deep blue sea, appears unhappy. Lawyer Lansana has been objecting to some of the issues the 6th prosecution witness, a banker at Standard Chartered Bank, has been testifying to, saying that PW6 should not make reference to the USD denominations, which were withdrawals that were made. He argues that payments were not made by PW6. The judge in a previous sitting had overruled similar objections and said the document, exhibit 1 – 127, ‘speaks for itself’. Ace prosecution counsel, Mrs. George, says the defence should not be surprised at the testimony of PW6 since they have been served with a summary of the witnesses’ statement. The prosecuting counsel states that the judge has been so patient, painstakingly recording word-for-word what is being said in the trial, therefore, the defence counsel should be mindful of that. The accused person, who appears depressed with respect to lawyer Dumbuya’s decision, informs the court that he will contact the lead defence counsel through his wife. Meanwhile, the accused person, Peter Conteh, is incacerated. Peter Conteh, Estalla Edwards and Paul Saio Kamara, former staff of STEWARD, a USAID environmental project, are standing trial on various corruption offences. Estalla Edwards and Paul Saio Kamara are still at large.
Posted on: Wed, 19 Mar 2014 17:23:03 +0000
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