High Court dismisses Bono Regional Minister's bid to halt Annoh-Dompreh defamation suit

The High Court in Accra has dismissed an application filed by the Bono Regional Minister, Joseph Addae Akwaboah, seeking to set aside the amended writ of summons and statement of claim in a defamation suit brought against him by the Member of Parliament for Nsawam-Adoagyiri, Frank Annoh-Dompreh.

The court also awarded GH¢5,000 in costs against Joseph Addae Akwaboah, clearing the way for the substantive hearing of the case to proceed.

The application challenged the validity of the plaintiff's amended writ of summons and amended statement of claim, arguing that the amendments had been improperly made.

However, Annoh-Dompreh opposed the application, maintaining that the amendments merely corrected the names and descriptions of the defendants and were made before the close of pleadings in accordance with the High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2004 (C.I. 47).

The plaintiff further argued that once the amended processes were filed, they superseded the original court processes and that the applicant had suffered no prejudice as a result of the amendments.

During the proceedings, the court was informed that the second defendant had accepted service of the amended processes, entered an appearance, engaged in settlement discussions with the plaintiff, and subsequently executed terms of settlement for adoption by the court.

On that basis, the plaintiff argued that Joseph Addae Akwaboah could not legitimately challenge the amendments on behalf of the second defendant.

After hearing submissions from both parties, the High Court dismissed the application in its entirety.

The ruling clears the way for the substantive hearing of the defamation suit filed by Frank Annoh-Dompreh against Joseph Addae Akwaboah before the High Court.

Annoh-Dompreh is being represented by Nkrumah & Associates, with the legal team comprising Daniel Martey Addo Esq., Kwesi Botchway Jnr Esq., and Eugene Ansah Okai Esq.