Member of Parliament of Asutifi South, Collins Dauda
The Member of Parliament of Asutifi South, Collins Dauda, gave gratitude to God after he was discharged by the High Court in Accra hearing the Saglemi Housing case.
The MP, who was charged with 4 other people over the implementation of the Saglemi Housing project when he was the Minister of Works and Housing, on Tuesday, February 25, 2025, was beaming with smiles after he was discharged.
He had few words to express his joy after about 7 years of being prosecuted.
Asked whether he was grateful to the court for discharging him, Collins Dauda said, “I’m grateful to Allah.”
His lawyer, on the other hand, was more expressive over the discharge.
He thanked the court for discharging his client.
“We have always believed in the innocence of ours. We have always believed in the case we have decided to defend.
“So, if the Attorney General’s department has come to this realisation and has filed for a nolle prosequi, we can only be grateful to the Office of the Attorney General, to the court, and to God almighty,” the lawyer said.
The High Court discharged the former Minister of Works and Housing, Collins Dauda, and the three other people involved in the Saglemi Housing case after the Attorney General dropped charges against the accused persons.
The Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Dr. Dominic Akuritinga Ayine, dropped the case against Alhaji Collins Dauda, and four others who had been charged with 70 counts of causing financial loss to the state over the Saglemi Affordable Housing project.
Alhaji Collins Dauda, along with Dr Kwaku Agyemang-Mensah, also a former Minister of Works and Housing; and Alhaji Ziblim Yakubu, Chief Director at the Ministry for Water Resources, Works and Housing, contributed to the Saglemi Housing deal when it was prepared and signed.
Also implicated was businessman, Andrew Clocanas, Executive Chairman of Construtora OAS Ghana Limited (now deceased), and Nouvi Tetteh Angelo, Chief Executive Officer and owner of Ridge Management Solutions Ghana Limited.
The charge sheet, filed on January 24, 2023, included charges of intentionally misapplying public property and causing financial loss to the state in the $200 million Saglemi Housing Project scandal.
Speaking at a press briefing in Accra on Wednesday, February 12, 2025, Dr Ayine, while justifying his decision to drop the case, argued that part of that amount was used to construct houses at Saglemi, making the charges flawed.
“In other words, the value of that built environment is, in my considered opinion, a key determinant of how much of the total sum was allegedly misapplied by the Honorable Collins Dauda. Discounting the value of the built environment renders those charges, in my considered opinion, defective,” he stated.
He also noted that subsequent payments made by other ministers after Dauda left office were not considered in the prosecution’s case.
“For instance, Atta Akyea, as Minister of Works and Housing, approved a payment of $5 million in 2017 that ought to have been considered in determining the value of state funds that Collins Dauda had misapplied. But that wasn’t done. And note, ladies and gentlemen of the media, that Atta Akyea was never charged, even though Collins Dauda was,” he pointed out.
Dr Ayine stressed that an accused person is entitled to know precisely the crime they are charged with and the burden they must discharge to prove their innocence.
He argued that the charges in some cases failed to meet the legal standard of precision required for a fair trial.
Watch Collins Dauda’s reaction in the video below:
I’m grateful to Allah… – Alhaji Collins Dauda after being discharged by the High Court #GHOneNews #EIBNetwork #GHOneTV #NewsAlert pic.twitter.com/Yp92sxNLlC
— GHOne TV (@ghonetv) February 25, 2025
Alhaji Collins Dauda leaving Accra High Court moments after officially being discharged together with three others in the Saglemi Housing Case… #GHOneNews #EIBNetwork #GHOneTV #NewsAlert pic.twitter.com/Tp2W3XHyEU
— GHOne TV (@ghonetv) February 25, 2025
BAI/AE
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