THE REPUBLIC vs. THE ARBITRATION COMMITTEE OF MAMPONG GYASE COUNCIL EX-PARTE: OPANIN KOFI TWUMASI [2008]DLCA6623

THE REPUBLIC vs. THE ARBITRATION COMMITTEE OF MAMPONG GYASE COUNCIL EX-PARTE: OP... [2008]DLCA6623

Date	2008-07-24
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL NO. H1/210/2007
Citation No.	[2008]DLCA6623

OWUSU J.S.C. [PRESIDING]

ANIN YEBOAH J.S.C.

BAFFOE-BONNIE J.S.C

MR. DENNIS ADJEI FOR THE APPELLANT/APPLICANT

MR. SARFO GYAMFI FOR THE RESPONDENT

[2008]DLCA6623
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >THE REPUBLIC<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>THE
ARBITRATION COMMITTEE OF MAMPONG GYASE COUNCIL<o:p></o:p>(RESPONENT/RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>EX-PARTE:
OPANIN KOFI TWUMASI<o:p></o:p>(APPLICANT/APPELLANT)<o:p></o:p>[COURT OF APPEAL, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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APPEAL NO. H1/210/2007 &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;DATE: 24TH JULY, 2008.<o:p></o:p>

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
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padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">MR. DENNIS ADJEI FOR THE
APPELLANT/APPLICANT <o:p></o:p>

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RESPONDENT <o:p></o:p>

OWUSU J.S.C. [PRESIDING], ANIN YEBOAH
J.S.C., BAFFOE-BONNIE J.S.C.<o:p></o:p>

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</div>ANIN-YEBOAH,
J.S.C. <o:p></o:p>This
is an appeal from the High Court, Kumasi in which the trial judge refused to
grant an application for the prerogative writ of certiorari to quash the
proceedings of the Arbitration Committee of Mampong Gyase Council. The
appellant on 10/06/2004 filed a motion ex-parte for leave to commence
proceedings by way of prerogative writ of certiorari. The basis for the
application [which was subsequently fought on affidavits] appear to be simple
and uncontroverted. The appellants, in the affidavit deposed to the fact that
his family had been occupying the Kontre stool of Ejura within the Mampong
Traditional Area. According to him, whenever the said stool is vacant as a
result of abdication, death or destoolment of the occupant, it is the
prerogative of himself [as head of family] the queen mother and Odikro of
Bonyon to nominate a member of the royal family to occupy the stool. He deposed
further that upon the abdication of the occupant of the Kontre stool of Ejura,
the three people; namely; the appellant, the Odikro of Bonyon and the queen
mother were the customarily recognized individuals to nominate a candidate to
occupy the stool. As the interested party to this proceedings had wanted to
install her brother as the Krontihene the appellant raised an objection and
swore the oaths of Mamponhene and Asantehene against the candidate, put forward
by the appellant. This swearing of oaths to challenge the nominee’s right to be
nominated to occupy the stool called for investigation into the matter before
the chief whose oath was sworn. This has always been the customary position. In
this case, the matter was reported to the Mamponhene whose oath was sworn.
According to the Appellants the Mamponhene ought to have caused the case to be
listed before the Judicial Committee of Mampong Traditional council, which
according to counsel, has the exclusive jurisdiction to determine the matter as
it was clearly a chieftaincy matter. The matter was placed before the
Arbitration Committee of Mampong Gyase Counsel which went into the matter, and
on 26/03/2004 the said arbitration committee made an award against the
appellant. <o:p></o:p>The
appellant promptly moved the High Court for leave to institute these
proceedings to quash the arbitration proceedings of the Arbitration Committee
of Mampong Gyase Council on grounds of jurisdictional incompetency, in that, it
was only the judicial Committee of the Mampong Traditional council which by law
had exclusive jurisdiction to determine any cause or matter affecting
chieftaincy within the Mampong traditional area. <o:p></o:p>The
matter was indeed a cause or matter affecting chieftaincy in the Mampong
Traditional area. The High Court, Kumasi on the 12/05/2006 dismissed the
application not on the grounds of jurisdictional incompetency but on the
grounds that the applicant had no locus standi to initiate the proceedings.
This appeal, is thus brought to seek the reversal of the ruling of the High
Court, Kumasi. <o:p></o:p>The
first complaint against the ruling is that the learned trial judge erred when
he held that the applicant lacked capacity. As rightly pointed out by the
learned trial judge, the application was fought on affidavit evidence. In his
affidavit in support of the application the appellant deposed to paragraphs 1
and 2 as follows:— <o:p></o:p>1.
That I am the Applicant and the Deponent herein. <o:p></o:p>2.
That I am the acting head of Aduana royal family of Bronyon and I have the
consent and concurrence of Opanyin Kwame Dapaah to depose to this affidavit.” <o:p></o:p>The
deposition in paragraph 2 speaks for itself and needs no interpretation
whatsoever. The interested party who filed an affidavit in answer to the
affidavit in support challenged the capacity in which the appellant had
initiated the proceedings as per paragraph 2 and 3 of his affidavit in
opposition filed on 16/12/04 as follows:— <o:p></o:p>