GCAA enters appearance in Airlines suit

Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has entered conditional appearance after the Accra Human Rights Court directed the lawyers of the entities that have been sued by the Ghana Society for the Physically Disabled (GSPD) to advise their clients to appear in court.

GSPD has dragged GCAA and three local airlines namely Antrak Air, Starbow Airlines and Africa World Airlines, to court for refusing to sell flight tickets to persons with disabilities.

The court, presided over by Justice Nana Kofi Essel Mensah, was about to hear an interlocutory injunction by the plaintiff against the GCAA and the three airlines but had to adjourn the case after it was informed that the Authority had entered conditional appearance.

Peter Amaleboba, counsel for the Authority, informed the court about their appearance so the trial judge adjourned the case to January 16, 2015.

Africa World Airlines, at the last hearing, prayed the court to adjourn the matter to enable them file an affidavit in opposition to the application.

GCAA and ANTRAC Airlines did not have any representatives in court but Ramona Abugebe represented Starbow.

The trial judge, owing to the absence of some of the defendants, said lawyers in the case should advise their clients because the pendency of an application is as good as the order for the application itself.

GSPD has also prayed the court to order GCAA and the other respondents to comply with Section 28 (1) of the Persons with Disability Act, 2006 (Act 715).

GSPD wants the interlocutory injunction against the three airlines not to deny such persons who desire to travel on their aircraft, pending the final determination of the substantive suit.