IN RE GYAN-FOSU(DECD.); BOAFO vs. AKWATIA-PEKOH III [1973]DLCA2287

Date	1973-12-05
Suit No.
Citation No.	[1973]DLCA2287

SOWAH JA

KINGSLEY-NYINAH J.A.

KORANTENG-ADDOW J.

OKYERE-DARKOH FOR THE APPELLANT.

PREMPEH FOR THE RESPONDENT.

[1973]DLCA2287
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" ><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:Times;
mso-bidi-font-family:Times;color:#548DD4;mso-themecolor:text2;mso-themetint:
153">IN RE GYAN-FOSU(DECD.); BOAFO<o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:Times;
mso-bidi-font-family:Times;color:#548DD4;mso-themecolor:text2;mso-themetint:
153">&nbsp;vs. <o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:Times;
mso-bidi-font-family:Times;color:#548DD4;mso-themecolor:text2;mso-themetint:
153">AKWATIA-PEKOH III<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;[COURT OF APPEAL, KUMASI]<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;[1974] 1 GLR 145<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:
5 DECEMBER 1973.<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">

OKYERE-DARKOH
FOR THE APPELLANT.<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">

SOWAH AND KINGSLEY-NYINAH JJ.A. AND KORANTENG-ADDOW
J.<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>JUDGMENT OF SOWAH J.A.<o:p></o:p>Sowah J.
A. delivered the judgment of the court. The short facts of this case are that
after the death of one Kwaku Gyan-Fosu also known as Nana Afriyea Ababio,
Krapahene, in 1963, the royal family of the Krapa stool elected his cousin Akua
Kunadu as his successor and authorised her to apply for letters of
administration to administer his estate which she accordingly did.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>A caveat
was entered on the application by the present appellant who contended that the
deceased was not a member of the royal family of Krapa and that he was the
proper person entitled to letters of administration. During the course of the
proceedings Akua Kunadu died and was substituted by Nana Owusu Akwatia-Pekoh.
III, the Krapahene. The applicant and the caveator hail from two different
geographical areas in Ghana; the applicant being an Ashanti from Krapa near
Ejisu and the caveator from Abomosu in the Akim Abuakwa state. Each contestant
was supported by his family and there was no question that each had been put up
by his family to make the claim. In consequence of the apparently
irreconcilable claims, an order was made by the court under Order 60, r. 21 (2)
of the Supreme [High] Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 1954 (L.N. 140A),
directing the applicant to take out a summons against the caveator for the
determination of the issue as to who was entitled to a grant of letters of
administration.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The
summons was duly taken out, pleadings were filed and evidence led. It turned
out that the real question was whether the deceased was an Ashanti from Krapa
near Ejisu or an Akim Abuakwa man from Abomosu in the Eastern Region of Ghana.
The evidence of the applicant indicated that the late Gyan-Fosu who was a royal
of the stool was born in Abomosu, lived the greater part of his life there and
acquired properties in that area but towards the evening of his life he was
traced by the Krapa family and was elected and enstooled Krapahene. He was the
Krapahene up to the time of his death. The caveator, of course, led evidence
which showed that the deceased was from his family at Abomosu and though he
admitted that the deceased was installed Krapahene, he maintained that it was
an honorary title conferred upon him and not because he was a member of that
royal family.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Upon the
evidence, the learned judge held that the deceased hailed from the royal family
of Krapa and that the Krapa claim must succeed and accordingly declared the
applicant to be entitled to the grant of letters of administration.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>In the
application for letters of administration, there was attached the usual
inventory of the deceased’s properties and included in it, is a farm at Monsah.
It appears in the course of the proceedings that a receiver and manager was
appointed during the pendency of the action to manage the properties. In his
attempt to take over the farm at Monsah, one Kwame Boateng from the family of
the caveator protested and applied to the court to exclude the said farm as that
was not one of the properties of Gyan-Fosu, deceased. Arguments were heard from
counsel of the parties and the learned judge ruled that the farm at Monsah was
wrongly included in his order and varied his order to exclude it. However in
his judgment as to which of the parties was entitled to letters of
administration the learned judge held in respect of this farm as follows: “I
accept the evidence of the plaintiff’s first witness and the plaintiff that the
Monsah farm was the self-acquired property of Gyan-Fosu and I hold that it
forms part of the estate.”<o:p></o:p><</main>