MR. CHRISTOPHER DANSO AND 7 OTHERS vs. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL & 4 ORS [2017]DLCA5954

Date	2017-06-28
Suit No.	SUIT NO. H1/39/2016
Citation No.	[2017]DLCA5954

AYEBI J. A. (PRESIDING)

TORKORNOO (MRS) J. A.

DOMAKYAAREH (MRS) J. A.

COUNSEL FOR PLAINTIFFS/APPELLANTS -- MERCY LARBI

COUNSEL FOR DEFENDANTS/RESPONDENTS -- THEOPHILUS APPOH (SSA)

[2017]DLCA5954
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >MR. CHRISTOPHER DANSO AND 7 OTHERS<o:p></o:p>(PLAINTIFFS/APPELLANTS)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>THE ATTORNEY GENERAL &amp; 4 ORS, GES THE REGIONAL DIRECTOR &amp; 3 ORS<o:p></o:p>(DEFENDANTS/
RESPONDENTS)<o:p></o:p>[COURT
OF APPEAL, KUMASI]<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">

</div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>COUNSEL FOR <span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:150%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;
mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">PLAINTIFFS/APPELLANTS &nbsp; &nbsp;-- MERCY LARBI <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">

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:normal;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;
mso-ansi-language:EN-US">COUNSEL FOR DEFENDANT<span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:
&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;mso-bidi-font-family:
&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">S/RESPONDENTS &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;-- THEOPHILUS
APPOH (SSA) <o:p></o:p>

</div><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:150%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;
mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">CORAM: &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
150%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;
mso-ansi-language:EN-US">AYEBI J. A. (PRESIDING), TORKORNOO (MRS) J. A.,
DOMAKYAAREH (MRS) J. A.<o:p></o: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="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="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">JUDGEMNT<o:p></o:p>

</div><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;
mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">TORKORNOO
(MRS), J.A.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The
Plaintiffs/Appellants are teachers employed by the Ghana Education Service.
They were stationed at Akumfi Ameyaw Senior High Secondary School at Aworowa as
at April 2011 when this suit was commenced by them. According to their Amended
Statement of Claim, on 24th January 2010, the students of the school
embarked on an ‘agitation’ which resulted in destruction of properties. A
committee was set up chaired by
one Mr. Amanor Kyeremeh, a retired educator which ‘made adverse findings against’ the Appellants in its report on the
‘student agitations’ and its cause.
According to their Statement of Claim, though they applied for a copy of the
report, the committee failed to give it to them. However, ‘by the work of providence, they happened to get some extracts’ from
the said report and it is these extracts which informed them of the said
adverse findings. The committee also made recommendations in their report. It
is their case that they were completely innocent of the findings and recommendations
against them in the Amanor Kyeremeh report. <o:p></o:p>However, the Appellants were given
letters dated 7th February 2011 transferring them to other senior
high schools on the strength of the report. The Appellants alleged fraud in the
manner of communication of the transfer letters, the content of the alleged ‘adverse findings’, and the procedure for
transferring them. They also alleged that they were not given opportunity to
appear before the Amanor Kyeremeh committee and as such, the findings and
recommendations against them were done in flagrant breach of the rules of
natural justice. <o:p></o:p>It was finally their case that through
the findings and recommendations, the Defendants had published defamatory
statements about them throughout the country. They said the publication of the
recommendations ‘tend to expose them to
public ridicule and openly disgrace and humiliate them before the students of
of Akumfi Ameyaw Senior High Schools’ and the transfer letters portrayed
them as persons given to ‘viciousness,
proclivity, tendency, penchant to incite, stimulate students to revolt’.
They claimed that they had suffered a great deal of pain, humiliation, expenses
as a result of the release/publication of the said report which had won for
them a national certificate of shame, dishonor and indignity such that they
feel debased among their peers. Their reputations had been greatly injured in
the eyes of right thinking men within the community that they live in, and
their chances of higher promotions were ‘perpetually
doomed because the Defendants had imputed criminality and viciousness to them’<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;They claime</main>