Dominic Kwadwo Brenya-Otchere, counsel for Nana Owusu Akyea, the family head of the late producer, actor and scriptwriter of Cantata Akan comedy, Nana Bosomprah, yesterday told the court that his client had denied that Abena Achia aka as Julie Juu, was the wife of the deceased.
He told an Accra High Court, in response to a contempt application filed by Julie Juu against the family head, Nana Akyea, Grace Omaboe alias Maame Dokono, David Dontoh and Amankwa Ampofo of Obra Drama fame, for burying the deceased without consulting her that “we deny that she is the wife of the deceased.”
Mr. Brenya-Otchere, who is also counsel for the three respondents in the contempt case, denied that they were aware of the injunction as claimed by Captain Nkrabeah Effah-Dartey (rtd), counsel for the applicant.
In addition, he explained that counsel for the applicant had failed to prove a prima facie case for which the respondents should be jailed.
Counsel for the respondents told the court presided over by Justice M. Iddrisu that assuming without admitting that she was his wife, the body of a deceased person is the property of the family who usually take major decisions about how the person should be buried.
According to him, counsel for the respondents “did not have sufficient documentary evidence to prove that they have been served any injunction order,” saying the submission by Mr. Effah-Dartey that the injunction issue was all over the media, was not sufficient proof that the respondents had heard about it.
He said a person shall be convicted for contempt when it had been proved that the person had been served and was aware of the order and disobeyed it, adding that the three television personalities were only invited guests to the funeral but had no role in the burial and performance of the funeral rights of their departed colleague.
He said David Dontoh was not even at the funeral grounds as he was not feeling well and prayed the court to dismiss the application as it had no merit.
Victoria Barth, counsel for the officer in charge of the Korle-Bu Medical School Mortuary, who had also been cited for contempt, on her part, admitted that her client indeed received the order but it was ambiguous because it was meant to stop the burial of the deceased but not meant to restrain the release of the body.
She said since the mortuary does not normally bury deceased persons but preserve dead bodies, the injunction order should have rather been directed at them not to release the body for burial, but instead, it ordered that they should not bury the body.
In addition, she said the contempt application was such that they were not party to the substantive suit, adding the other persons who brought the body were a lady named Christina, Nana Akosua Bosomprah and a gentleman who said they were his wife and children, so her client could not have refused to give them the body when those who brought it came back for it.
She stated that her client consulted his superiors who also advised that he should release the body to those who brought it, to which he obliged, praying the court to dismiss the application because it was vexatious and had no merit.
Counsel for Julie Juu, who responded on points of law, said the issue was not about whether or not he had married Julie Juu but about contempt being shown to the court by the action of the respondents, stating that he was told the family was served the injunction order.
In response to the assertion that the body of a deceased person belongs to the family, the retired captain noted that in Ghana, when a man dies, his widow performs widowhood rites.
The case has been adjourned to January 17, 2011 for ruling.
Counsel for Julie Juu, at the previous hearing, pleaded with the court to jail the respondents for burying the deceased in spite of the court injunction.
He said they should be jailed to serve as a deterrent to others who might want to flout the rules of injunction but failed to tell the court whether the respondents, who are alleged to have committed the contempt, were indeed served the injunction order.
The contempt application was filed by Julie Juu against the television personalities and family head of the late producer for burying her supposed husband when she had sought an injunction order preventing anybody from having anything to do with the body, till she was recognised as his wife. Nana Bosumpra was said to have been married with three children
