MARGARET OSEI ASSIBEY vs. COMMANDER GODWIN EDWARD OSEI [2010]DLCA3653

Date	2010-12-17
Suit No.	SUIT NO. H1/8/2010
Citation No.	[2010]DLCA3653

MARIAMA OWUSU (MISS) J.A. (PRESIDING)

F.G. KORBIEH J.A.

IRENE C. DANQUAH (MS.) J.A.

[2010]DLCA3653
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >MARGARET OSEI ASSIBEY<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>COMMANDER GODWIN EDWARD
OSEI<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;[COURT OF APPEAL, KUMASI]<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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SUIT NO. H1/8/2010&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; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;DATE: 17TH DECEMBER, 2010<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;
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MARIAMA
OWUSU (MISS), J.A. (PRESIDING), F.G. KORBIEH, J.A. AND IRENE C. DANQUAH (MS.),
J.A.<o:p></o:p>

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

</div>IRENE C DANQUAH JA<o:p></o:p>The Plaintiff is a widow
of Samuel Kwame Kyei (deceased).&nbsp; She
commenced the action for and on behalf of herself and the children of the
deceased against the 1st and 2nd Defendants who are the
sister and nephew respectively of Commander Godfred Edward Osei, one time the
Regional Secretary of Ashanti Region.&nbsp; It
is the case of the Plaintiff that her late husband who was an ex-serviceman and
employed as a security personnel at the time when Commander Osei was the
Regional Secretary advanced an initial amount of ¢20,000.00 (old cedis) to
Commander Osei as part payment for the purchase of one of the type SH9
buildings from the State Housing Corporation [SHC].&nbsp;&nbsp; After Commander Osei had paid the initial
deposit, the SHC commenced the construction of the house in dispute ie.
H/No.461, Kwadaso Estate.&nbsp; After the
amount for the initial deposit had been exhausted but with the building uncompleted
Commander Osei then introduced the deceased to the foreman of the SHC as the
owner of the building and also advised him to purchase the remaining building
materials if he wanted the house completed.&nbsp;
The deceased therefore spent a fortune to have the building
completed.&nbsp; The deceased then moved to
occupy the building with the Plaintiff, his children and other relations.<o:p></o:p>Some years after the coup
of 1979 the deceased heard that the building in dispute was being counted among
the properties of Commander Osei that were to be confiscated to the State.&nbsp; The deceased petitioned the Confiscated
Assets Committee in Kumasi and as a result, the building was not included.&nbsp; The deceased continued to occupy the building
until he died on 29th June 1996, having stayed in it for over twenty
(20) years.&nbsp; The 1st
Defendant, who was permitted a temporary accommodation by the deceased after
entreaties from Commander Osei, brought her son the 2nd Defendant to
stay in the building with her.&nbsp; The 1st
Defendant started making adverse claim to the building contending that it
belonged to her brother Commander Osei.<o:p></o:p>On 16th
December 2000, the Defendants engaged the services of the striking Force,
Kumasi to forcibly remove the Plaintiff and the children of the deceased from
the disputed house.&nbsp; In the course of her
ejectment, her personal effects were damaged beyond repairs.&nbsp; The Plaintiffs claims against the Defendants
were for the following reliefs:<o:p></o:p>1.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Declaration
of title to H/no.461 Kwadaso Estate, Kumasi.<o:p></o:p>2.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Recovery
of possession.<o:p></o:p>3.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Damages
for trespass.<o:p></o:p>4.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Perpetual
injunction restraining the Defendants the servants and or workmen and agents
from in anyway interfering with the Plaintiff’s possession of the property
fully described supra.<o:p></o:p>The Defence<o:p></o:p>The Defendants having
entered appearance, resisted the Plaintiff’s claim to the property in their
statement of Defence.&nbsp; They averred that
the house in dispute is the property of Commander Osei who rather permitted the
deceased to move into the house as a favour when the deceased placed before him
his desperate accommodation problems and cried for assistance.&nbsp; They denied the Plaintiff’s assertion that it
was the deceased who allowed them to occupy the house.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>In the course of the
proceedings, Commander Godwin Edward Osei applied to the court and was joined
as a co-defendant to the suit.<o:p></o:p>Co-Defendant’s Defence<o:p></o:p>The gist of the
Codefendant’s amended statement of defence is that sometime in 1977 when he was
the then Eastern Regional Commissioner and resident in Koforidua, he applied
for an SH9 type estate house from SHC.&nbsp;
Upon the payment of a deposit of ¢10,000.00 he was initially allocated
No.M30 South Suntreso, Estate Kumasi which wa</main>