SUMAILA BIELBIEL vs. ADAMU DARAMANI AND THE ATTORNEY GENERAL [2011]DLSC4094

Date	2011-10-26
Suit No.	REVIEW MOTION NO. J1/2/2010
Citation No.	[2011]DLSC4094

AKUFFO (MS) (PRESIDING) J.S.C

BROBBEY J.S.C

ANSAH J.S.C.

ADINYIRA (MRS) J.S.C

OWUSU (MS) J.S.C

DOTSE J.S.C

YEBOAH J.S.C

BONNIE J.S.C

ARYEETEY J.S.C

GBADEGBE J.S.C

AKOTO-BAMFO (MRS.) J.S.C

YONI KULENDI FOR THE APPLICANT

RESPONDENT APPEARS FOR HIMSELF

CECIL ADADEVOH (SENIOR STATE ATTORNEY) FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.

[2011]DLSC4094
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >SUMAILA BIELBIEL<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>ADAMU DARAMANI AND THE ATTORNEY GENERAL<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;[SUPREME COURT, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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REVIEW MOTION NO. J1/2/2010&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;DATE: 26TH OCTOBER, 2011<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>YONI KULENDI FOR THE
APPLICANT<o:p></o:p>RESPONDENT APPEARS FOR
HIMSELF<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">

CECIL
ADADEVOH (SENIOR STATE ATTORNEY) FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL. <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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AKUFFO
(MS) (PRESIDING) J.S.C, BROBBEY J.S.C, ANSAH J.S.C., ADINYIRA (MRS) J.S.C,
OWUSU (MS) J.S.C, DOTSE J.S.C, YEBOAH J.S.C, BONNIE J.S.C, ARYEETEY J.S.C,
GBADEGBE J.S.C, AND AKOTO-BAMFO (MRS.) J.S.C<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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RULING<o:p></o:p>

</div>S.
A. B. AKUFFO (MS) J.S.C<o:p></o:p>Brief
Background<o:p></o:p>By a Writ of Summons issued in the High Court, Accra,
on 9th February 2009, Mr Sumaila Bielbiel, the Respondent herein (who
is hereinafter referred to as ‘the Respondent’) commenced an action against Mr.
Adamu Dramani (who is hereinafter referred to as ‘the Applicant’) and the
Attorney General,&nbsp; for (inter alia) the
following reliefs:-<o:p></o:p>“1.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; A declaration that defendant is a holder
of a British passport and therefore owes allegiance to a country other than
Ghana and is therefore disqualified from holding the office of Member of
Parliament of the Republic of Ghana.<o:p></o:p>2.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; An injunction against the Defendant
restraining him from holding himself out as a Member of Parliament and compelling
him to vacate his seat in Parliament.” ... etc<o:p></o:p>The
Applicant entered conditional appearance and applied to the High Court for an
order setting aside the writ on the ground that the said court lacked the
jurisdiction to entertain the matter, since the cause of action was in effect
an election petition and, as such, was out of time and, in any event, ought to
have been commenced by a Petition rather than a Writ of Summons. The Learned
High Court Judge dismissed the application to set aside the Writ of Summons,
and the Applicant herein, being dissatisfied with that decision, appealed to
the Court of Appeal. The learned Justices of the Court of Appeal upheld the
Applicant’s appeal on the main ground that, since the Respondent, by his writ,
was seeking an order compelling Applicant to vacate his parliamentary seat, in
the circumstances of the case, he was challenging the validity of the
Applicant’s election to Parliament, and the matter was in effect an election
petition. As such therefore, according to their Lordships, by virtue of
Sections 16 and 18 of the Representation of the People Law, 1992 (PNDCL 284)
(as well as the terms of Order 2(2) of the High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules,
2004 (C.I. 47)), not only was the action not commenced in proper form, but
moreover, the same was also out of time. The Court of Appeal, therefore, set
aside the Writ.<o:p></o:p>Thereafter,
the Respondent, by a writ filed on March 30th 2010 against the
Applicant herein and the Attorney General invoked the original jurisdiction of
this Court, claiming:-<o:p></o:p>“1.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; A declaration that on a true and proper
interpretation of articles 97(1)(e) and 94(2)(a), Adamu Daramani, also known as:
Adamu Daramani-Sakande; Adamou Daramani Sakande; Adamou Sakande, who holds a
British Passport and, therefore, “owes allegiance to a country other than
Ghana” is acting in contravention and in continuous violation of the 1992 Constitution
for as long as he continues to sit in the Parliament of Ghana.<o:p></o:p>2.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Any consequential orders the Supreme
Court may deem meet.”<o:p></o:p>For
the purposes of the instant application, the relevant event after the filing of
this writ was that the Applicant herein raised a preliminary objection to the jurisdiction
of this Court to entertain the Respondent’s suit, on the grounds that:-<o:p></o:p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;
mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;">a.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;