The Supreme Court has dismissed an application by former Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund (GIIF) Chief Executive Officer, Solomon Asamoah, seeking to halt proceedings in the ongoing $2 million SkyTrain trial.
Mr Asamoah, the first accused person in the case, had filed an application for certiorari seeking to quash the decision of the Accra High Court, which dismissed his submission of no case after the prosecution closed its case.
Following the filing of the certiorari application, he also sought an interlocutory injunction to restrain the High Court from continuing with the trial pending the determination of the application.
He further asked the Supreme Court to suspend the orders requiring him to open his defence.
However, the Supreme Court, sitting as a single-Judge court, dismissed the injunction application on Monday, August 31, 2026.
Justice Senyo Dzamefe, who heard arguments on the application last Friday, held that Mr Asamoah’s own affidavit evidence did not disclose a serious case to be tried.
The court reasoned that the matters being complained of were issues properly dealt with through an appeal rather than an application invoking the supervisory jurisdiction of the Supreme Court.
Justice Dzamefe further held that the High Court’s decision to rule on the submission of no case was not an exercise undertaken without jurisdiction or in excess of its jurisdiction.
The court also found that Mr Asamoah had failed to establish what irreparable harm would be suffered if the injunction was not granted.
The ruling therefore clears the way for the High Court to continue with the SkyTrain trial without waiting for the determination of the certiorari application.
The Accra High Court, presided over by Justice Audrey Kocuvie-Tay, has already given Mr Asamoah and the second accused person, Professor Christopher Ameyaw-Akumfi, until September 23, 2026, to file their witness statements if they intend to open their defence.
The extension was granted on August 24 after the lawyers for the two accused persons sought adjournments pending the determination of fresh applications before the higher courts.
The High Court subsequently adjourned the case to October 5, 2026, with case management conferences scheduled for October 5, 6 and 7.
The prosecution had opposed the further extension, arguing that the accused persons had already been given sufficient time to file their defence processes.
The Deputy Attorney-General, Dr Justice Srem-Sai, told the court that the accused persons had previously been directed to file their defence processes within 21 days and that an earlier stay application had also been dismissed.
The High Court nevertheless exercised its discretion to grant them another extension.
In a related development, Professor Christopher Ameyaw-Akumfi has filed a fresh application for a stay of proceedings pending appeal.
The application is scheduled to be heard by the Court of Appeal on September 1, 2026.
Prof. Ameyaw-Akumfi is the former Board Chairman of GIIF and is standing trial alongside Mr Asamoah.
The prosecution closed its case in May after calling three witnesses, including former GIIF Board Member Yaw Odame-Darkwa, former Acting GIIF Board Secretary Kofi Boakye and National Intelligence Bureau staff officer Francis Aboagye, who led investigations into the matter.
The prosecution’s witnesses testified that the GIIF Board did not approve the SkyTrain project or the payment of $2 million associated with the proposed project.
Mr Asamoah and Prof. Ameyaw-Akumfi subsequently filed submissions of no case, but the High Court dismissed the applications and directed them to open their defence.
The two former GIIF officials are facing six charges relating to the alleged disbursement of $2 million for the proposed Accra SkyTrain project, which was never constructed.
They have been charged with conspiracy to commit crime, namely wilfully causing financial loss to the Republic, as well as conspiracy to commit crime by intentional dissipation of public funds.
Each of the accused persons also faces individual charges of wilfully causing financial loss to the Republic and intentional dissipation of public funds.
The prosecution alleges that the $2 million was transferred from GIIF to Africa Investor Holdings Limited, a South African company, for the proposed SkyTrain investment without the requisite approval of the GIIF Board.
Both accused persons have pleaded not guilty to all the charges.