The Court of Appeal has struck out a withdrawal application by the Attorney-General seeking to stay the execution of its decision acquitting and discharging former Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC) Chief Executive Officer Christine Sedina Tamakloe-Attionu.
The State informed the court on Wednesday, August 12, that it had filed a notice of withdrawal on August 10, bringing the application to an end.
The Attorney-General had sought to suspend the effect of the acquittal pending a further appeal at the Supreme Court, arguing that Mrs Tamakloe-Attionu could potentially leave the jurisdiction if the acquittal took immediate effect.
The State has since initiated the appeal process at the Supreme Court.
Counsel for Mrs Tamakloe-Attionu, Sidney Antonio, however, questioned the procedure used to withdraw the application. He argued that the Attorney-General should have sought the court’s permission before filing the notice, particularly because August 12 had already been fixed for the delivery of the court’s ruling on the application.
Mr Antonio said the defence was served with the notice of withdrawal only a day before the scheduled ruling.
He also said the defence had not been formally served with any new application filed by the Attorney-General at the Supreme Court, although they had heard reports of such proceedings.
The development follows the Court of Appeal’s decision in July 2026 to overturn Mrs Tamakloe-Attionu’s 10-year prison sentence imposed by the Accra High Court in April 2024.
The appellate court acquitted and discharged her after finding that the prosecution had failed to prove its case.
Mrs Tamakloe-Attionu had been convicted by the High Court on 78 counts, including stealing, causing financial loss to the state and money laundering, and sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment with hard labour.
The Attorney-General subsequently sought to stay the effect of the acquittal while pursuing a further appeal at the Supreme Court.
