Hotelier Dragged To Court For Perjury

Perjury, the offence committed by a witness in judicial proceedings

who, having been lawfully sworn or having affirmed, wilfully gives false

evidence is starring a hotelier, Angelo R. Adukere, in the face at the

Supreme Court where he has been dragged to by a complainant in a case involving

lands at Oyarifa in Accra.

The complainant,

Patrick Kunto, is praying the Supreme

Court to declare as null and void a ruling of a Court of Appeals which

overturned a High Court ruling in his favour against six accused persons,

including Angelo Adukere.

In the

substantive case with suit number AL62/2008 titled Patrick Kuntor Vrs. Nuumo

Klotia Akpor & 6 others involving a 37.6 acres of land, an Accra High

Court, in its ruling on 13th March, 2009 ruled in favour of the

plaintiff, asserting that it is unlawful to register the said land in the name

of any other person since the plaintiff’s claim to the land has not been

challenged.

Angelo R Adukere,

who is the 6th defendant in the case appealed against the decision of the High

Court on the grounds that he was not been served by the court to enable him

enter his defence. The Court of Appeals upheld his submission and therefore

quashed the ruling of the High Court. In its ruling, the three member panel

made up of Justice J A Ayebi, Justice Isaac Duose and Justice K.A. Quaye held that

“

the rules of court require that the appellant be served personally with a

hearing notice of the hearing which took place on 21/11/08. Inspite of the

declaration of the Registrar that the search answered on 12/08/09 is official

search result from the court, there is nothing on record to show the appellant was

in fact served with notice of the hearing

which took place on 21/11/08”

Continuing,

the three judges held that “by not

serving the appellant notice to attend the trial which resulted in a judgement

against him, he was denied natural justice. The court itself was not in the

circumstances clothed with jurisdiction to embark on the trial. The said trial

with the consequent judgment against the appellant is thus a nullity. We

therefore allow the appeal. Accordingly, judgment of 20/02/09 is hereby set

aside. We order trial de novo”

Patrick

Kuntor, the plaintiff, dissatisfied with the ruling of the Court of Appeals

subsequently took the matter before the Supreme Court alleging that the

decision of the Court of Appeals was based on falsehood presented to it by the

6th defendant. According to the plaintiff, there is evidence that

the 6th defendant was dully served and thus, his claim before the

Court of Appeals was false.

A document

sighted by this paper dated 12-6-08 and signed by a bailiff of the High Court,

Joshua Odametey on oath held that on the 16th day of June, 2008 at

10:38 pm, he duly served the 6th defendant, Angelo R Adukere personally

at his hotel.

This

claim, if true, portends danger for the 6th December as it does not

only restore the ruling of the High Court but also holds him as having

committed perjury, a crime that can earn him a jail term.