Court grants Koku Anyidoho’s request for substituted service against Gunu

A Tema High Court has issued an order for substituted service on Dzifa Gunu, the member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), who allegedly claimed that Koku Anyidoho, a former deputy general secretary of the party and Founder of Atta-Mills Institute killed his 8-year-old daughter for ritual purposes.

The court upon reading the affidavit of Yaw Awuku Asabre, counsel for the plaintiff filed on February 4, 2021, in support for an ex-parte for an order for substituted service, ruled that the defendant be served with the writ of summons, statement of claim and all other subsequent processes by substituted service.

The order of the court, a copy of the processes is to be posted on the High Court’s notice board, Tema.

The order of the court also requires that one publication of the said processes be placed in a National News Dailies precisely Daily Graphic.

The Chief Executive Officer for the Atta-Mills Institute last week filed a motion for ex-parte for an order for substituted service on Dzifa Gunu, who he has sued for defamation.

The plaintiff said all efforts to serve the defendant in the defamation suit has proved futile hence he is praying the High Court to grant an order for the defendant be served with the writ of summons.

Mr. Anyidoho has dragged Dzifa Gunu before the High Court over allegations that he (Anyidoho) murdered and used her 8-year-old daughter for ritual purposes.

It is the case of the plaintiff that the defendant (Gunu) made a categorical statement that he (Anyidoho) caused the death of his 8-year-old daughter who passed away on November 7, 2021.

Mr. Anyidoho further avers that the defendant made a categorical statement that he (Anyidoho) was absent during the pre-burial, burial, and post burial ceremonies of his late daughter.

He among other things avers that the defendant made these claims with malicious intent the reason being that he (Gunu) failed to cross-check the veracity of his claims in his publications.

He said the defendant published the claims without any fact justifying the allegations of crime, illegality, and dishonesty against the plaintiff, and furthermore, these allegations imputed him (Anyidoho) in the offending publication is baseless and false.

He added the claims were made carelessly and recklessly without lawful excuse or justification and was calculated to injure the plaintiff’s reputation and to expose him to public ridicule, hatred, and contempt.

He is therefore demanding a sum of 10 million Ghana cedis for the defamatory statements published on the Facebook pages of the defendant.