“You know the products that were imported in the country caused the deaths?” Counsel L. Farage asked. The witness, Essa Marenah, responded hesitantly, “Caused the deaths of who?”
Unimpressed by the response, Counsel Farage pressed on: “Mr Marenah, this is not a joke. You're here to answer to the victims - those sitting right behind me,” she said while cross-examining the witness.
At that point, Counsel MD Mballow intervened: “My Lord, this is not a personal exchange between the counsel and the witness. The counsel does not control the witness; the court does. If a question is asked, the witness has every right to answer. And if he doesn’t understand, he may ask for clarification. My witness is not here to be intimidated,” he reacted.
Counsel Tambadou also objected: “My Lord, I believe my learned colleague is being overly emotional. I am standing, you cannot speak over me,” he said, challenging Farage’s conduct.
“And why state that the victims are sitting behind you? That’s an emotional appeal, not a proper question. Let's focus on the facts of this case,” he emphasised
Counsel Farage continued, undeterred: “We’re not here to discuss ordinary deaths or anonymous victims. The witness knows exactly why he’s here. When I say these four medicines caused the deaths, and he asked, ‘deaths of who?’, who do you think we’re here for? This case is about children who died because of poor medication,” she said, insisting that her question is a straightforward one rooted in fact.
Presiding Judge Jaiteh then intervened to restore order: “Mr Witness, you must listen carefully to the questions. If you don’t understand something, ask me, and I will instruct counsel to clarify. But do not engage in back-and-forth conversations. Let’s proceed in an orderly manner,” the Judge advised.
Counsel Farage began his questioning by loudly calling out the names of children who reportedly died as a result of contaminated medications. She added emphatically, “These poor quality medications caused the deaths of all the children I have named.”
In response, the MCA acting Director Essa Marenah countered: “I don’t believe the medications caused the deaths of all these individuals. In some cases, perhaps, yes but not all. And we have evidence to support that.”
Clarifying further, he explained: “I am not denying that some may have died of AKI (Acute Kidney Injury), but it’s important to understand that AKI has multiple causes. When you review the death certificates, you will find that some of the children didn’t even suffer from AKI. Some of them never took these contaminated medicines at all; they merely died around the same time. I don't understand how all these cases were included in your claim.”
He continued: “In fact, there’s at least one case where the child did not die from AKI. And there’s another child who died in January 2022 before the medicines in question had even been imported into the country. So, how could that death be linked to these products? This applies to several other cases as well.”
At the start of his testimony yesterday, Essa Marenah informed the court that he had been supervising Stop Step Pharmacy since 2004, prior to joining the Medical Control Agency (MCA).
During cross-examination, Counsel Farage asked: “Can you tell us what due diligence the MCA carried out regarding the products in question?”
In response, Marenah stated: “The MCA fulfilled all legal requirements to ensure that imported products met the necessary standards. Due diligence includes verifying that the importer is registered, possesses a valid importation license, obtains clearance from the MCA, and that the imported products are inspected upon arrival. The containers must be opened in the presence of MCA officials to allow inspectors to examine the medications.”
When pressed further on what measures were taken before the products entered the country, Marenah replied that he had already answered the question. However, Counsel Farage insisted on a direct response.
Marenah then clarified: “Before importation, the importer must coordinate with the MCA. Any product selected for import must be listed on an Import Clearance Permit, which includes full details of the medications, such as certificates of analysis and other documentation required for MCA screening.”
Earlier, Ali Schuman, Director of Atlantic Pharmaceutical Company, who had been recalled to testify, was questioned by Counsel M.D. Mballow about whether the 3rd, 4th, and 5th defendants played any role in selecting the products. Schuman responded firmly, “No.” He later clarified that while those defendants did not participate in choosing the products, they were the ones who approved them.
When asked whether any quality control had been carried out on the products, Schuman replied that such checks had not been requested.
Counsel Mballow pressed further: “As a licence holder, isn't it correct that when you import products, they are expected to meet safety and quality standards?” Schuman responded, “Sure, when you import something, it should be safe,” asserting that the company complied with all MCA regulations when importing medications into the country.
The case was adjourned till July 3 this year for continuation of cross-examination of MCA’s acting executive director by counsel Farage.
