The Chief of Defence Staff, Lieutenant General Thomas Oppong-Peprah, has denied releasing the dismissal letter of Richard Jakpa, the third accused in the ongoing ambulance trial, to the Minister of Defense, Dominic Nitiwul.
Lieutenant General Oppong-Peprah clarified that no request for the letter had come to his desk, making it impossible for him to explain how the Minister obtained the document.
During the trial, the Deputy Attorney-General, Alfred Tuah-Yeboah, while cross-examining Jakpa on Thursday, June 27, introduced into evidence a letter purportedly written to dismiss Jakpa from the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) in 2007.
According to Tuah-Yeboah, the letter originated from the office of the Defense Minister and included allegations of misconduct and breaches of military protocols leading to Jakpa’s dismissal.
Jakpa’s lawyers objected to the tendering of the letter, questioning its relevance. However, the presiding judge, Justice Afia Serwah Asare-Botwe, admitted the document into evidence, noting that the witness had already acknowledged the document and could speak to it.
She added that, the cover letters were official documents and were admissible to establish credibility or otherwise.
During the hearing on Monday, July 29, the CDS, when questioned by Jakpa’s lawyer, reiterated that he had not released the letter to the Defense Minister.
“My lady, as the Chief of Defense Staff, I have never received any request to release any document to anybody. So I can’t answer to that,” he said.
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