[2016]DLCA5151 Login to Read Full Case <span style="font-size: 18px !important;"><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; text-align:center;tab-stops:170.1pt"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;color:#00B0F0">SAMPSON OKYERE & 5 ORS<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; text-align:center;tab-stops:170.1pt"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">(PLAINTIFFS/APPELLANTS)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; text-align:center;tab-stops:170.1pt"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;color:#00B0F0">vs.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; text-align:center;tab-stops:170.1pt"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial;color:#00B0F0">GHANA REVENUE AUTHORITY<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; text-align:center"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">(DEFENDANT/RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; text-align:center"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">[COURT OF APPEAL, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align: justify;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in; mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:10.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">CIVIL APPEAL NO: H1/217/2015 21<sup>ST</sup> JANUARY, 2016<o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align: justify"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align: justify"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family: "Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">MICHAEL DONKOR FOR PLAINTIFFS/APPELLANTS<o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align: justify;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in; mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">ODARTEY LAMPTEY FOR DEFENDANT/RESPONDENT <o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align: justify;tab-stops:170.1pt"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">CORAM: <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align: justify;tab-stops:170.1pt"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">MARFUL-SAU JA (PRESIDING), ADUAMA OSEI JA, TANKO AMADU JA <o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border-top:solid windowtext 1.5pt; border-left:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;border-right:none; padding:1.0pt 0in 1.0pt 0in"> <p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt; text-align:center;border:none;mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt; mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:1.0pt 0in 1.0pt 0in"><b><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align: justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><b><u><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">ADUAMA OSEI<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align: justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">In this judgment, the Plaintiffs/Appellants are referred to as <b>“the</b> <b>Plaintiffs”</b> and the Defendant/Respondent is referred to as <b>“the</b> <b>Defendant”.</b> <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">In their writ of summons issued in the Labour Division of the High Court, Accra, on the 9<sup>th</sup> of December, 2011, the Plaintiffs sought the following reliefs against the Defendant: <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">“a. A declaration that the dismissal of the Plaintiffs by the Defendant on May 18<sup>th</sup>, 2011 is wrongful; <o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">“b. Payment in full of the salaries and allowances due the Plaintiffs from May 18<sup>th</sup>, 2011 to date of judgment with interest thereon;<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">“c. Damages for wrongful dismissal;<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">“d. Reinstatement of the Plaintiffs to the positions that they held prior to their wrongful dismissal;<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">“e. An order prohibiting the Defendant from victimising the Plaintiffs upon their reinstatement; and<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">“f. Costs, including lawyers’ fees”.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">The Defendant is an authority established under the Ghana Revenue Authority Act, 2009 (Act 791), charged, among other things, with the administration of taxes. Until the 18<sup>th</sup> of May, 2011, the Plaintiffs were employees of the Defendant authority. By its letter to the Plaintiffs dated the 18<sup>th</sup> of May, 2011, however, the Defendant dismissed the Plaintiffs from its employment for alleged misconduct. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">The dismissal of the Plaintiffs followed the Defendant’s investigation into the appearance of the Plaintiffs in a video footage produced by one Anas Aremeyaw Anas, captioned <b>“Enemies of the Nation”,</b> in circumstances which suggested that the Plaintiffs had solicited for or collected bribes from importers at the port of Tema.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">In the statement of claim which accompanied their writ of summons, the Plaintiffs contended that the video in which they appeared to be soliciting for and collecting bribes was not authentic, that their dismissal was in breach of the rules of natural justice and based on evidence gathered through illegal means, deception and entrapment, and that the proceedings that culminated in their dismissal violated their rights to administrative justice and did not comply with the requirements imposed by law.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial">The Defendant authority, on the other hand, contended in their statement of defence that the video footage was authentic, and alleged that the Plaintiffs had, in the course of its investigations into the disclosures in the footage, admitted receiving or collecting money, which they described as <b>“appreciation monies”.</b> Further, the Defendant denied that the Plaintiffs had been entrapped or had otherwise been induced or tempted to receive monies which, as the Defendant contended, were received by the Plaintiffs while they were <b>“on the job”</b> and therefore amounted to illegal conduct on their part. The Defendant again contended that the proceedings that culminated in the Plaintiffs’ dismissal were carried out in accordance with its disciplinary procedure and were therefore lawful. It denied that the Plaintiffs were entitled to the reliefs claimed by them or any relief at all.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;tab-stops:56.7pt"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-fam