AWEDAM v. THE REPUBLIC

JUDGMENT OF MENSA BOISON J.A.

Mensa Boison J.A. delivered the judgment of the court. The appellant, John Awedam, was convicted at the Bolgatanga criminal session [p.905] on 6 July 1979, of the murder of Charles Awontera, at Navrongo on 4 February 1978, and was sentenced to death by Okai J.

On 2 February 1978, the deceased gave evidence for the prosecution in a case of selling above the control price, in which one Chamaso was convicted and sentenced to four months' imprisonment at the District Court, Navrongo. The charge was in respect of a tin of milk sold to one Peter Ayirizang, who gave evidence later in the instant murder trial as the first prosecution witness. There was nothing remarkable about that trial, but for the conduct of the present appellant at the District Court, Navrongo and the events of 4 February 1978.

What happened was that on the conviction and sentence of Chamaso, the appellant, who had been at the court during the trial, accosted the deceased and the first prosecution witness in turn, and threatened that because they had caused his friend to be jailed, he would kill them within three days. This threat was repeated that same evening to the deceased, when the appellant, then in charge of the Range Rover he was employed to drive, saw the deceased at the cinema palace in town. His exact words were "Charlie you have made the court to jail my friend. I will kill you."

Both the deceased and the first prosecution witness must have taken these threats as empty bluff. Indeed, the deceased brushed aside advice to report the matter to the police, as he thought he could match the appellant fist to fist. But on 4 February 1978, at about 3.30 p.m., the appellant ran over the deceased with his Range Rover on the main town road in Navrongo. Strangely enough, this occurred some twenty minutes after the first prosecution witness had, by a hair's breath, saved himself from being similarly run over in another part of that road by the appellant with his Range Rover. The deceased was severely injured and died within an hour after the incident at the Navrongo Hospital.

4 February 1978 was a market day at Navrongo, with the main road from the market to the Navrongo Secondary School thronged with people to and from the market. At about 3.00 p.m., the first prosecution witness was making his way from the cinema palace towards the market place and as it happened, he was walking along the left side of the road close to the gutter, when he was alarmed by fr