ATTRAM vs. ARYEE [1965]DLSC1783

Date	1965-05-10
Suit No.
Citation No.	[1965]DLSC1783

OLLENNU JSC

ACOLATSE JSC

APALOO J.S.C.

ASAFU-ADJAYE SEN. FOR THE APPELLANT.

NO APPEARANCE BY OR ON BEHALF OF THE RESPONDENT.

[1965]DLSC1783
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >ATTRAM <o:p></o:p>vs. <o:p></o:p>ARYEE <o:p></o:p>[SUPREME COURT]<o:p></o:p>[1965] GLR 341<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

DATE:
10 MAY 1965.<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 0in 0in">

ASAFU-ADJAYE, SEN. FOR THE APPELLANT.<o:p></o:p>

NO APPEARANCE BY OR ON BEHALF OF THE RESPONDENT.<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:
<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 0in 0in">

OLLENNU, ACOLATSE AND APALOO JJ.S.C.<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>JUDGMENT OF OLLENNU J.S.C.<o:p></o:p>Ollennu
J.S.C. delivered the judgment of the court. The land in dispute in this case is
situate at North-West Korle Gonno, Accra, and is part of the lands known as
James Town lands. James Town is divided into three main sections, generally
called quarters: these are Sempe, Alata, Akumaje; each of these sections or
quarters has a stool, and any particular portion of the James Town lands
occupied exclusively or predominantly by subjects of a particular stool, or
which is shown to be under the control or administration of any of those three
stools, is spoken of as land of that stool.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>There
has, since the nineteen-twenties, been a series of litigation either between
the Sempe stool and the Alata stool or between their grantees in respect of
portions of the James Town lands. The most important of these was in connection
with claims for compensation for land at Weija acquired for the Accra Water
Works. That litigation terminated with an opinion of the Judicial Committee of
the Privy Council delivered on 16 June 1927 in Akue v. Ababio IV1 a copy of which
was admitted at the instance of the defendant, the appellant herein, and marked
exhibit 4; that opinion laid down the principle for determining conflicting
claims by the three stools of James Town, Sempe, Alata and Akumaje, or by their
grantees to any particular portion of the James Town lands. That principle will
be referred to presently.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The
plaintiff derives title to the land from the Sempe stool under and by virtue of
a deed of gift dated 7 August 1952, and claims that she has had undisturbed
possession of the same since then save that some time in June 1960, and again
some time in June 1961, the defendant trespassed upon the land and removed her,
the plaintiff’s, corner pillars there from. She then sued the defendant for a declaration
of title, damages for trespass and injunction. The defendant does not deny
entry upon the land, but denies removing the plaintiff’s pillars therefrom. He
contends that the area in dispute is a portion of land granted to his ancestors
by the Alata stool, and that his entry thereon was in exercise of his right as
a member and grantee of his family, the Okortsoshishi family.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The issue
which the trial court had to resolve was whether the grant made by the Sempe
stool gave the plaintiff a valid title to the land; in other words, which of
the two stools, Sempe or Alata, is the competent authority to grant the land in
dispute.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>It
appears that while this case was pending in the High Court litigation arose
between the Sempe stool and the Alata stool in respect of a large portion of
the James Town lands. It was mentioned during the proceedings in the High Court
that the land in dispute in this case is composed of the land that was in
dispute between the two stools in that other suit; judgment in that case was
delivered subsequent to the judgment in the present case.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Now, in
the opinion of the Privy Council in Akue v. Ababio IV2 relied upon by the
defendant, their Lordships, after discussing briefly the history of the James
Town stools and their relationship to the James Town lands, said inter alia:<o:p></o:p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:5.0pt;
margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;mso-pagination:none;border:none;mso-padding-alt:
31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes">“It was
found as a fact by both Courts in the Colony that the lands in question were
exclusively used and occupied by the Alatas, and it was admitted by counsel for
the appellant that the finding means that those lands were originally settled
by the Alatas, the several villages and so forth being founded by them. This
finding is accepted by the appellant. It was further found by both Courts that
by the custom of the Ga tribe land which had been exclusively used </main>