Koku Anyidoho files for substituted service against NDC's Gunu as he run from GH¢10m suit

The Chief Executive Officer for the Atta-Mills Institute and former Deputy General Secretary of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Koku Anyidoho has filed a motion for ex-parte for an order for substituted service on Dzifa Gunu, who he has sued for defamation.

The plaintiff says 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.

Koku Anyidoho has dragged a member of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Dzifa Gunu before the High Court over allegations that he (Anyidoho) murdered and used her 8-year-old daughter for ritual purposes.

The former deputy general secretary of the umbrella family in his statement of claim says the defendant on January 16, 2021, published an article on his Facebook page and casting serious insinuation on his integrity.

However, the three attempts made by a bailiff of the court to serve the defendant has not yielded positive results.

Following this, the plaintiff has instructed his lawyer Yaw Awuku Asabera to file an ex-party motion for substituted service.

He says he has reasons to believe that the defendant is ”deliberately evading service of the Writ of Summons and Statement of Claims as to stultify the ends of justice”.

He indicated in his supporting affidavits that it will be practically impossible to serve the defendant personally with the documents and the only way he could be served is through substituted service by pasting same at the court premises and in the Daily Graphic.

The plaintiff has sued Gzifa Gunu for accusing him of killing his [Anyidoho] 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.