THE REPUBLIC vs. HIGH COURT LAND DIVISION - ACCRA EX- PARTE: NII NOI MORTON AND OTHERS [2016]DLSC2822

THE REPUBLIC vs. HIGH COURT LAND DIVISION - ACCRA EX- PARTE: NII NOI MORTON AND... [2016]DLSC2822

Date	2016-07-28
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL NO. J5/21/2016
Citation No.	[2016]DLSC2822

DOTSE JSC. (PRESIDING)

YEBOAH JSC

BONNIE JSC

BAMFO (MRS) JSC

PWAMANG JSC.

TETTEH JOSIA FOR APPLICANT

FRANCIS ADJEI FOR THE 1ST INTERESTED-PARTY

[2016]DLSC2822
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >THE REPUBLIC<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>HIGH COURT<o:p></o:p>LAND DIVISION - ACCRA<o:p></o:p>EX- PARTE: NII NOI
MORTON AND OTHERS<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;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

CIVIL APPEAL NO. J5/21/2016&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: 28TH JULY, 2016<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:&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;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
<o:p></o:p>TETTEH
JOSIA FOR APPLICANT<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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FRANCIS
ADJEI FOR THE 1ST INTERESTED-PARTY<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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DOTSE
JSC. (PRESIDING), YEBOAH JSC, BONNIE JSC, BAMFO (MRS) JSC, AND PWAMANG JSC.<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>PWAMANG,
JSC.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>This is an application
invoking the supervisory jurisdiction of the court for an order of certiorari
to issue to quash order of mandamus granted by the High Court, Accra in Suit
No. LD/0214/2015 dated 18th January, 2016. The order directed the
Executive Director, Lands Commission to cancel, delete and expunge from the
records of the Lands Commission all registrations and plotting in the names of
the applicant and four others.<o:p></o:p>The brief facts are that on
13th May, 2013, the High Court (Land Division) presided over by
Justice Amos Buertey, gave judgment in favour of the 1st Interested Party and
against applicant herein and others for declaration of title to a parcel of
land at Danchira in the Ga South District of the Greater Accra Region. The
judgment further ordered the Lands Commission, which was 6th
defendant, to “cancel, delete, expunge, remove, reverse all registrations,
plotting , processing of all or any portions of the land the subject matter of
this suit” that had been entered in the names of the other&nbsp; defendants including applicant herein.<o:p></o:p>Then on 15th January,
2014, the Supreme Court gave judgment against the applicant herein and others
and in favour of Nii Tackie Amoah VI, who is the grantor of 1st
interested party. In its judgment the Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of
the Court of Appeal which declared Nii Tackie Amoah VI owner of a larger land at
Danchira including the land of the 1st interested party and directed
the deletion of applicant’s documents from the records of the Lands Commission.<o:p></o:p>Basing on the judgment of
the Supreme Court, Nii Tackie Amoah VI filed an application for judicial review
in the nature of mandamus in the High Court, Accra against the Executives
Secretary, Lands Commission for an order directed at him to lapse the plotting
of documents in the name of Nii Noi Morton (Applicant herein) in their records.
The application was Suit No. FAML/86/15 and was &nbsp;filed on behalf of Nii Tackie Amoah VI by
Lawyer Nathaniel Myers. Though the Applicant herein was not made a party to the
application, he was served as someone who was to be affected by the order
sought.&nbsp; He filed an affidavit in
opposition in which he prayed the court to order the director of surveys to
demarcate the lands in dispute before any deletion since, according to him, the
case was a boundary dispute. When lawyer for Nii Tackie Amoah VI was served with
the affidavit in opposition, he abandoned the application all together and it
was finally struck out for want of prosecution.&nbsp;
<o:p></o:p>Meanwhile, unknown to
Applicant herein, the 1st Interested Party, using his judgment given
by Justice Amos Buertey and acting through the same Lawyer Nathaniel Myers,
filed another application on 14/12/15 for mandamus against the same the Executive
Secretary, Lands Commission praying for the same reliefs as those in the
mandamus application by Nii Tackie Amoah VI.&nbsp;
The second application was assigned Suit No. LD/0214/2015 with a return
date of 18th January, 2016.&nbsp;
This application was placed before a different Judge, Justice Anthony Oppong,
and when it was called on the return date it was granted.&nbsp; The order of mandamus on the face of it does
not indicate that the Executive Secretary, Lands Commission was served with
that application for mandamus.<o:p></o:p>It is this order that
applicant prays the court to quash on the grounds that the High Court had no
jurisdiction to make the order and secondly breach of natural justice as he was
not served with the second application in which the order was made. He has
exhibited a search report as Exhibit “A6a” as evidence that he was not served. He
has contended that he ought to have been served with the application for
mandamus so that he could be heard since he stood to be affected by the order
sought.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>The first interested party
filed an affidavit in opposition on 29/4/2016 through Frederick Kofi Asare, its
Managing Director.&nbsp; At paragraphs 6, 9, 10
and 11 of that affidavit he deposed as follows:<o:p></o:p>