ISAAC MENSAH vs. JEROME MANSO [2018]DLCA4917

Date	2018-05-17
Suit No.	APPEAL NO: H1/78/2018
Citation No.	[2018]DLCA4917

F.G. KORBIEH J.A. (PRESIDING)

AGNES M. A. DORDZIE (MRS.) J.A.

I.O.TANKO AMADU J.A.

MRS. PHIPPINAH ACKEAH FOR THE APPELLANT

MR. FAUSTINUS KOFI KORANTENG FOR THE RESPONDENT

[2018]DLCA4917
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >ISAAC MENSAH<o:p></o:p>(DEFENDANT/APPELLANT)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>JEROME MANSO <o:p></o:p>(PLAINTIFF/RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;[COURT OF APPEAL, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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APPEAL
NO: H1/78/2018&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &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
MAY, 2018<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>MRS.
PHIPPINAH ACKEAH FOR THE APPELLANT<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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MR.
FAUSTINUS KOFI KORANTENG FOR THE RESPONDENT
<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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F.G.
KORBIEH J.A. (PRESIDING), AGNES M. A. DORDZIE (MRS.) J.A., I.O.TANKO AMADU 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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JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p>

</div>F.G. KORBIEH, J.A.<o:p></o:p>The
plaintiff/respondent’s claim against the defendant/appellant in the court below
basically was for declaration of title to a piece or parcel of land whose
boundaries he described as follows: “bounded on the North-East by the Lessor’s
land measuring 136.2 feet more or less on the South-East by the Lessor’s land
measuring 210.9 feet more or less on the South-West by the Lessor’s land
measuring 211.8 feet more or less which said piece or parcel of land is more
particularly delineated on the Plan attached hereto and thereon marked PINK.”
He therefore issued a writ of summons in the Lands Division of the High Court,
Accra making the claim which writ was accompanied by a statement of claim
containing averments that have been summarized as follows: in or about 1999 the
plaintiff was granted the land by the Numo Sowah Din Okpelor family of Teshie
acting through its true and lawful attorney, Nii Okpelor Jacob Ablorh Mensah;
in or about 2003, Suit No. CS. 28/2003 titled David Ofantser &amp; 2 Others v.
The Dzasetse of Nungua Stool had been instituted by the plaintiff and his
grantors over land including the land in dispute and judgment had been declared
in favour of the plaintiff and his grantors; his grantors having executed an
indenture in his favour, he exercised various acts of ownership and possession
over the land and later travelled abroad; during his absence the defendant, who
claimed to have bought the land from an unknown grantor,&nbsp; trespassed unto the land and caused damage to
the developments he had made on the land; he had reported the matter to the
police at Nmai Dzorm but it had later been transferred to the Property Fraud
Unit at the Police Headquarters for further investigations. The
defendant/appellant denied the claim and averred, among other things in his
amended statement of defence, that the plaintiff’s grantor had no land to give
to the plaintiff. He averred that he acquired his land from DW1, Yakubu
Abdalla, who had acquired the land from the plaintiff’s grantors through a
consent judgment titled Nicholas Tawiah &amp; 3 Others v. Adjorkor Okpelor
Sowah &amp; 3 Others. The defendant/appellant further averred that DW1
confirmed the grant in an instrument dated 7/9/2009 which was being processed
at the Land Title Registry. He also averred that he acquired bare land and an
unofficial search at the Lands Commission had revealed that there was a
judgment in favour of his grantor and that subsequently he exercised overt acts
of ownership over the land by constructing a bedroom wooden structure on the
land but the plaintiff destroyed the said structure. He also further averred
that the plaintiff could not have been a bona fide purchaser of the land since
he (the defendant) was prior in time to have acquired the land and exercised
overt acts of ownership. He described the boundaries of his land as follows:
“…bounded on the North by a proposed road measuring 211 feet more or less on
the South by the Assignor’s land measuring 209 feet more or less on the East by
the assignor’s land measuring 135 feet more or less on the West by the
assignor’s land measuring 105 feet more or less…”<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>It was on
the basis of this summary of pleadings that the case went to trial. We will
deal with salient points of the evidence as and when the need arises. Suffice
now to say that judgment was given in favour of the plaintiff/respondent. Part
of the judgment reads as follows:<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;&nbsp; “From this I glean the land the
Din Sowah family conceded and gave to the defendant’s grantor was not for the
Din Sowah family at the time the family purported in court to have given to
Yakubu Abdalla, and which became the subject of the judgment of Ofosu Quartey,
J. wherein he even ordered the Lands Commission to plot and register same for
Dw1.<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; As far as the judgment covered
the land which at the time of the consent judgment and the Memorandum of
Understanding was no longer the property of the Din Sowah family, then no title
passed from the Din Sowah family to Yakubu Abdalla for him to have given to
defendant”.<o:p></o:p>