KORBLAH II ALIAS TETTEH AND ANOTHER vs. ODARTEI III [1980]DLCA1079

Date	1980-01-17
Suit No.
Citation No.	[1980]DLCA1079

ANIN JA

EDUSEI JA

CHARLES CRABBE J.A.

E. D. KOM FOR THE APPELLANTS.

D. A. NII-APONSAH FOR THE RESPONDENT.

[1980]DLCA1079
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >KORBLAH II ALIAS TETTEH AND ANOTHER <o:p></o:p>vs. <o:p></o:p>ODARTEI III<o:p></o:p>[COURT OF APPEAL, ACCRA] <o:p></o:p>[1978] GLR 932<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:
17 JANUARY 1980<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">

E. D. KOM FOR THE APPELLANTS.<o:p></o:p>

D. A. NII-APONSAH FOR 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 1.0pt 0in">

ANIN, EDUSEI AND CHARLES CRABBE JJ.A.<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>JUDGMENT OF ANIN J.A.<o:p></o:p>By an
originating summons filed on 31 October 1975, the plaintiff claimed the
following reliefs:<o:p></o:p>“This
summons is issued upon application of Nii Odartei III, sub-chief of Odarteiman
(Nsakina) in the Greater Accra Region of the Republic of Ghana who claims to be
the only sub-chief of Odarteiman (Nsakina) for the determination of the
following questions: whether under the provisions of the Chieftaincy Act, 1971
(Act 370): (1) The alleged enstoolment of George Aryee Damey Tetteh, the fourth
defendant, under the stool name of Nii Tetteh Korblah II was valid. (2) The
notification in the Local Government Bulletin No. 50 of 22 November 1974, of
the alleged enstoolment of the fourth defendant is not void and of no effect.
(3) Paragraph (2) of the Greater Accra Regional Administration’s letter No.
GAL/ 74/Vol. 3 dated 31 July 1975, purporting to prohibit the plaintiff from
interfering in the affairs of Nsakina, that is, the selling of land and the
performance of any duties as chief of the area is not void as being ultra vires
or without jurisdiction. And for a declaration that: (a) The plaintiff is the
sole legitimate sub-chief of Odarteiman (Nsakina). (b) There is no such
traditional office as senior sub-chief of Nsakina with jurisdiction over the plaintiff’s
area of authority, namely, Odarteiman (Nsakina). (c) The plaintiff is entitled
to perform his customary duties as sub-chief of Odarteiman (Nsakina) including
the management of the stool lands under his jurisdiction.”<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>From the
copious affidavits and exhibits filed and submissions made by learned counsel
for the parties, three outstanding facts emerged: Firstly, Odarteiman or
Nsakina is a village in the Greater Accra Region. In respect of this village
there exist two Local Government Bulletin notices recognising two different
persons, i.e. the plaintiff and the fourth defendant herein, as “sub-chief” and
“senior sub-chief” respectively. In the first place, a notice in the Local
Government Bulletin dated 28 September 1973 (exhibit N) announced the enstoolment
of the plaintiff (James Odartei Lamptey) as sub-chief under the stool name of
Nii Odartei III. The effective date of his enstoolment is stated as 29 August
1968 and the particulars of the town or division are given as “Odarteiman
(Nsakina), Ga Traditional Area, James Town.”<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>A second
Local Government Bulletin dated 22 November 1974 (exhibit A) gave notice of the
enstoolment of the fourth defendant (George Aryee Damey Tetteh) as “senior
sub-chief” under the stool name of Nii Tetteh Korblah II with effect from 10
June 1966 for the town of Nsakina in the Sempe Division.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Pausing
here for a moment, it is clear that these two Local Government Bulletins pose
serious constitutional problems for the little village of Nsakina. Prima facie,
they saddle her with a duality of chiefs as well as duality of divisional
overlords. On the testimony of these Local Government Bulletins published in
the official gazette, Nsakina would appear not only to be torn between two
chiefs, i.e. the plaintiff and the fourth defendant, but also to be condemned
to subservience to two rival divisional overlords, i.e. James Town Alata stool
and Sempe stool at one and the same time.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The
second important matter disclosed by the pleadings is an arbitration conducted
by the third defendant into the affairs of Nsakina which was subsequently set
aside by Griffiths-Randolph J. in the High Court, Accra: see Odartei III v.
Badoo alias Korbla II [1977] 2 G.L.R. 1. Apparently, during the 1973 Ga
Traditional Homowo celebrations, there arose a dispute between the plaintiff
herein and the fourth defendant’s immediate predecessor (R. A. Badoo) as a
result of which the latter was alleged to have assaulted the former. The matter
was submitted to the third defendant and his elders for customary arbitration.
And they made an adverse award on the traditional status of the plaintiff as a
sub-chief of </main>