PETER KWABENA ACHEAMPONG vs. YAW APPIAH-SARPONG AND DESMOND ADDO-BINEY [2018]DLCA4962

Date	2018-02-01
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL NO.H1/120/2016
Citation No.	[2018]DLCA4962

V.D. OFOE J.A (PRESIDING)

IRENE CHARITY LARBI (MRS) J.A

MABEL M. AGYEMANG (MS) J.A

[2018]DLCA4962
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >PETER KWABENA ACHEAMPONG<o:p></o:p>(PLAINTIFFS/APPELLANT)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>YAW APPIAH-SARPONG AND DESMOND ADDO-BINEY<o:p></o:p>(DEFENDANT/RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>[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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CIVIL APPEAL NO.H1/120/2016&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; DATE:
1ST FEBRUARY, 2018<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:<o:p></o:p>V.D.
OFOE J.A (PRESIDING), IRENE CHARITY LARBI (MRS) J.A, MABEL M. AGYEMANG (MS) J.A<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border-top:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
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mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:1.0pt 0in 1.0pt 0in">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p>

</div>IRENE
CHARITY LARBI (MRS).&nbsp; J.A.<o:p></o:p>This is an appeal from the High
Court Land Division, Accra dated 11th January, 2011 which dismissed
the Plaintiff’s action with costs of Gh₡1,000.00 to each of the two Defendants.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>The fact in dispute as well as
the respective cases of the parties have been stated accurately in the opinion
read by my learned sister Mabel Agyemang JA.&nbsp;
I agree with them and adopt them as my own.&nbsp; I also agree with her opinion and I only wish
to add to it.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>It is settled law that
documentary evidence should prevail over oral evidence.&nbsp; In the instant case, the Plaintiff’s main
claim in the High Court is for declaration of title to the land described on
the writ. <o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The Plaintiff in evidence
tendered Exhibit ‘A’ an Indenture made on 12th August 1981, between Nii
Odai Ayiku IV, Nungua Mantse as Lessor and Kwame Nkrumah as Lessee.&nbsp;&nbsp; He also tendered the Land Certificate issued
to Kwame Nkrumah on the 5th October, 2002 as Exhibit ‘B’.&nbsp; He said he cleared the land and erected four (4)
pillars at the corners and proceeded with processing of documents. He tendered
a building Permit Application Form approved on the 24th June, 1985
in evidence as Exhibit ‘D’.&nbsp; He said he
put up a four (4) bedroom house up to roofing level and put a caretaker called
Kwabena in occupation.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>In 1996, he used the building
as a collateral for a loan from the Agricultural Development Bank Limited (ADB)
and tendered an “Approval of Loan Facility” note dated 21st
November, 1996 and a Written Consent to Mortgage Property situate at East Legon
dated 27th September 2000 as Exhibits ‘E’ and ‘E1’.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>We noticed that, apart from the
Exhibits “E” and “E1” all the documents tendered by the Plaintiff namely the
Lease, Land Certificate, Building Permit and the Building Plan all had the name
of Kwame Nkrumah as the owner.&nbsp; Further,
the Search Report on the land (Exhibit “G”) the Notice of
Application for Registration of title to Land are also in the name of Kwame
Nkrumah.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Section 11(4) of the Evidence
Act, 1975 [NRCD 323], puts the obligation in civil proceedings on a party who
asserts to produce sufficient evidence so that on all the evidence, a
reasonable mind could conclude that the existence of the fact was more probable
that its non-existence.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>See: FOSUA &amp; ADU-POKU VRS. DUFIE (Deceased) &amp; ADU POKU-MENSAH [2009]
SC GLR 310;&nbsp; KUSI &amp; KUSI VRS. BONSU
[2010] SC GLR 60 JASS CO. LTD. &amp; ANOR VRS. APPAU &amp; ANOR. [2009]SC GLR
265.<o:p></o:p>