Kevin Ekow Baidoo Taylor, the host of With All Due Respect on Loud Silence TV
On 16th January 2020, the Accra High Court issued an arrest warrant for Kevin Ekow Baidoo Taylor, the host of With All Due Respect on Loud Silence TV.
The warrant, signed by Justice Eric Kyei-Baffour (a Court of Appeal judge sitting as an additional High Court judge), was issued after Taylor posted a video on Facebook.
The warrant was to remain in force until Taylor was either arrested or passed away.
The warrant stated:
“WHEREAS the above-named case is pending before the High Court, Accra.
“AND WHEREAS the Court’s attention has been drawn to a scandalous video circulating on social media in relation to this case, which contains an extremely scandalous and prima facie contemptuous speech that scandalizes the Judge, the Court, and the whole administration of justice;
“AND WHEREAS the said scandalous video is purported to have been made by a scoundrel who styles himself as Kevin Taylor, who is not a party to this case;
“AND THE COURT, finding it necessary to invoke the powers vested in it under Article 126(2) of the 1992 Constitution, to proceed against the said scoundrel, Kevin Taylor, for contempt;
“NOW THEREFORE, the Court orders the issuance of this Warrant for the apprehension of the body of Kelvin Taylor, and for him to be produced before the Court to answer why he should not be committed to prison for making such contemptuous statements, which are totally a fabrication by him in the said video.
“IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that this warrant is directed at the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), the Ghana Police Service, the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), and National Security to take appropriate steps for the apprehension and production of the said Kevin Taylor before the Court.
“IT IS HEREBY FURTHER ORDERED that this Warrant remains in force until the said Kevin Taylor is arrested and shall lapse only on the day the said Kevin Taylor expires from the surface of the earth.”
Despite the clear directive, Ghana’s security agencies did not enforce the warrant because Kelvin Taylor was not in the country for several years.
However, there were reports that Kevin Taylor had returned to the country several times, yet he managed to avoid detection. He later appeared in court, and the warrant was eventually dismissed.
Media personality Paul Adom-Otchere suggested that Kevin Taylor was protected by certain people within National Security.
Rev John Ntim Fordjour, the MP for Assin South and Ranking Member of the Defence and Interior Committee in Parliament, also argued that Kevin Taylor should have been arrested immediately upon arrival, rather than allegedly receiving protection from military and national security forces.
AM/KA
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