GLC Disbars State Attorney For Receiving ¢400k From Woyome
The General Legal Council (GLC) has disbarred Samuel Nerquaye-Tetteh, a Chief State Attorney and lawyer for conduct that adversely affects the dignity and high standing of the legal profession.
His license was revoked after the Disciplinary Committee of the GLC, found he had breached Rule 2(2) of the Legal Profession (Professional Conduct and Etiquette) Rules, 1969 (L.I. 613).
This was contained in a notice issued by the Council on January 31, 2024, cited by Graphic Online.
According to the notice, Nerquaye-Tetteh indirectly received an amount of GH¢400,000.00 from Alfred Agbesi Woyome, an accused in the Alfred Agbesi Woyome versus General & Anor case in 2011 while acting as a lawyer and a Chief State Attorney.
“That, he, as a lawyer and a Chief State Attorney, having acted as counsel for the State in the case, Alfred Agbesi Woyome versus General & Anor had an amount of Four Hundred Thousand Ghana Cedis (GH¢400,000.00) transferred directly from Mr Alfred Woyome into the bank account of his wife, Mrs. Gifty Nerquaye-Tetteh without any reasonable explanation; a conduct or act that adversely affects the dignity and high standing of the legal profession,” the notice cited by Graphic noted.
The GLC has thus withdrawn the licence of Nerquaye-Tetteh, meaning he cannot hold himself out as a lawyer any longer.
“SAMUEL NERQUAYE-TETTEH shall not hold himself out as a lawyer or attend chambers, or render or purport to render any professional legal services to the public. The practising licence of Samuel Nerquaye-Tetteh is hereby withdrawn forthwith.”
It will be recalled that Nerquaye-Tetteh was among two people who were arrested in 2010 and charged alongside Alfred Agbesi Woyome in the judgment debt saga.
Background
Alfred Agbesi Woyome, a known National Democratic Congress (NDC) financier at the time, faced two counts: causing financial loss to the state and defrauding by pretence. This was after he received 51 million cedis as judgment debt over the cancellation of a contract awarded to him by an NPP government to mobilize funds for constructing stadia for the CAN 2008 tournament held in Ghana.
The payment of the debt was made under the watch of Attorney General Betty Mould Iddrisu in the late Mills administration, when Woyome proceeded to court to claim the contract was illegally cancelled and demanded a judgement debt.
However, after the appointment of Martin Amidu as Attorney General in 2010, the case was reopened for the prosecution of Woyome, Nerquaye-Tetteh and one other for the illegal receipt and payment.
