20th December, 2007
Her Lordship, Justice Georgina Wood Chief Justice Republic of Ghana Supreme Court Building Accra, Ghana
Court Ruling By Judge Kobena Adoe Acquaye in a Matter Between Richard Osae-Duodu vs. Nana Amma Obenewaa Suit No: BL 637/2004
My Lord, if the rule of law is about finding the truth and offering justice based on evidence, then suffice it to say Judge Kobena Acquaye’s ruling, in the above cited case, violates the principles of fundamental social justice.
I wish to state that I am the defendant in the case herein, and rightful owner of the land in dispute. In the June 2003, my land document was stolen at the Lands Commission. Under mysterious circumstances, it was on registered in the name of Mr. Emmanuel Roger Amudzi, and Mr. Richard Osae-Duodu.
On October, 2004, Justice Acquaye dismissed an interlocutory injunction, and granted the plaintiff relief to build on my land, having initially ordered the plaintiff to stop any further development on the said land. Under the current climate political climate, how does a plaintiff, institute a civil court action using the document that did not bear his name, and which was subsequently found to be forged?
During the entire hearing, the plaintiff never attended any of the court hearings. He only attended courts twice to testify in his defence. Was this self-assurance a surprise to me? Not at all, especially when Judge Acquaye’s openly admitted that the plaintiff is his friend.
On the orders of Judge Acquaye, my grantor, Mr. Carl Josiah Reindorf, came from England to testify before the court, and gave signature samples for forensic analysis. Contrary to conventional legal wisdom, the same judge who ordered my grantor to come from England, at an expense, did not see the same wisdom in ordering the plaintiff to produced his grantor, Mr. Emmanuel Amudzi, who lives in close proximity to him.
I would also like to state herein that the forensic expert from the Police Crime Laboratory authenticated my documents, and in the course of testimony stated that Mr. Amudzi's document was forged.
The Greater Accra Lands Commissioner, Mr. J.E.K. Dadson in his deposition produced a number of documents which supported my claim that Mr. Amudzi acquired my land through fraud. He also produced documents to contradict the plaintiff’s assertion that he was not aware that the land was stolen when he bought it from Mr. Amudzi.
I would like to bring to notice that the plaintiff and Mr. Amudzi were involved in the theft of the late Mr. Allotey’s land. These two gentlemen went further to set ablaze the deceased car to deny the wife and, then, five-month old baby, their source of income. I was not surprised when Judge Acquaye brushed aside this incriminating evidence when my counsel brought it up to establish a pattern of criminal behaviour. The name of the police officer who investigated this case is Inspector Mohammmed. He can be reached at 0244635564 or 021-662139.
This year, I had the opportunity to speak to one Mrs. Hermia Bab-Klu, an ex-employee of Lands Commission. Mrs. Bab-Klu admitted to me that she helped the plaintiff to plot my land in his name. She stated that she was a friend of the plaintiff’s late wife, Akweley. Mrs. Bab-Klu can be contacted at 0277584445.
Since ordering the respective parties to make a written submission in June 2007, the plaintiff lawyer, Mr. Geoffrey Quist did not comply. On 22nd November, Judge Acquaye admitted in court that Mr. Quist had not submitted his written statement, and told the plaintiff’s representative to inform Mr. Quist that he (i.e. the judge) was going to give his judgement on 19th December, 2007.
In his ruling dated 20th December, 2007, Judge Acquaye admitted that there was evidence of fraud in the acquisition of my land. He however absolved the plaintiff from any wrongdoing. Under what law can a sitting judge override expert testimonies by one of the nation’s superlative forensic experts, and the Lands Commissioner, and give perverted judgement to a plaintiff because he is his friend? Do our nation’s laws, and our democracy, empower a presiding judge to undercut expert testimonies? What law in the nation’s statute books allows a rightful owner to be denied her property of value to satisfy a judge’s pecuniary interests?
How can a judge who cited evidence of fraud validate the practice? Is it because the perpetrator, herein, is his friend? What legal precedent did Judge Acquaye apply in the cases herein? Was it a rational judgment informed by tested laws, or a whim to punish a defendant for standing up against his criminal dealings with some the nation’s mot notorious land fraudsters? It is not by sheer coincidence that, on the day of the judgment, the plaintiff, his lawyer, and representative did not show up in court.
In the year 2005, I personally lodged a complaint with the Complaint Unit about allegation of bribery against Judge Acquaye. Mr. George Kingsley Acquah, the late Chief Justice, recommended disciplinary measures to be taken against Judge Kobena Acquaye, and his court clerk. Conveniently, the file never made it to the Directorate for unexplained reasons.
In the mind of Judge Acquaye, the perversion of justice is another avenue to lining his pocket. Unlike some of the nation’s respected judges, Judge Acquaye does not see the law as a moral anchor in creating stability. Rather, he sees it as a means to flex his muscles without regard for the intrinsic worth of humanity, and to dictate his wishes outside the framework of the law.
My Lord, I am not pleading for sympathy, but fairness. As Ghanaians, we cannot continue to maintain an “elephant under the carpet” mindset; an elitist attitude that undervalues the rule of law and the importance of society’s subaltern.
In my opinion, the showcasing the nation’s modest achievements in remedying injustice is not enough, if we allow the Judge Acquayes in the nation’s judiciary to violate jurisprudential values with impunity. My stand against injustice is not informed by my dislike of Judge Acquaye. Rather it is driven by my commitment to right the subtle dangers that could potentially wreck our nation’s present composure. When justice fails one of us, it fails us all. I look forward to hearing from you.
Thank you,
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