ABUSUAPANYIN NANA TIITE POKU IV & 5 ORS. vs. COMET PROPERTIES LTD & ANO. [2018]DLHC10410

Date	2018-12-06
Suit No.	SUIT NO.: LD/0102/2019
Citation No.	[2018]DLHC10410

HER LADYSHIP JUSTICE ELLEN VIVIAN AMOAH

KWADWO ADDEAH SAFO WITH VICTORIA AWUNI FOR THE PLAINTIFFS/APPLICANTS PRESENT

EDWARD DARLINGTON WITH VICTORIA ENCHILL AND KWEKU ANSAH AKROFI FOR THE DEFENDANTS PRESENT

[2018]DLHC10410
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >ABUSUAPANYIN NANA TIITE POKU IV &amp; 5 ORS.<o:p></o:p>(PLAINTIFFS)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>COMET PROPERTIES LTD &amp; ANO.<o:p></o:p>(DEFENDANTS)<o:p></o:p>[HIGH COURT, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p><div style="border-top: none; border-right: none; border-left: none; border-image: initial; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; padding: 0cm 0cm 1pt;">

<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">SUIT
NO.: LD/0102/2019&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: 6TH
DECEMBER, 2018<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>KWADWO ADDEAH SAFO WITH VICTORIA AWUNI FOR
THE PLAINTIFFS/APPLICANTS PRESENT<o:p></o:p><div style="border-top: none; border-right: none; border-left: none; border-image: initial; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; padding: 0cm 0cm 1pt;">

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:150%;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">EDWARD DARLINGTON WITH
VICTORIA ENCHILL AND KWEKU ANSAH AKROFI FOR THE DEFENDANTS PRESENT<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:<o:p></o:p>HER
LADYSHIP JUSTICE ELLEN VIVIAN AMOAH<o:p></o:p><div style="border-top-width: 1.5pt; border-top-color: windowtext; border-left: none; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; border-right: none; padding: 1pt 0cm;">

<p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%;
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mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:1.0pt 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">RULING<o:p></o:p>

</div>&nbsp;This is an application for
joinder pursuant to Order 4 Rule 5(2) of
CI 47. <o:p></o:p>The 2nd Defendant
seeks to join Abusuapanyin Odei Kotogwene as the 3rd Defendant in
this suit. All defendants in this suit challenge the capacities of all the
plaintiffs as put in the Statement of case.&nbsp;
By paragraph 13 of the 2nd defendant statement of defence,
the 2nd defendant stated that there are three suits two in Accra and one in Koforidua as between the 1st
plaintiff, the 2nd plaintiff and 2nd defendant.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>In para 2 of 2nd
defendant statement of defence, the 2nd defendant states the
capacity of Abusuapanyin Odei Kotogwene as the head of family of Onyakesiasi.&nbsp;
2nd Defendant /applicant annexed Exhibit NOK2 an extract from
Akuapem traditional council to show that the applicant for joinder has been
recognized as an Abusuapanyin. <o:p></o:p>&nbsp;In para 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 of the
statement of claim the Plaintiffs say that they are either the head or the
principal members of the Aduana Abrade and in para 7 in particular, they state
that they instituted this present action in their own capacities as well as for
and on behalf of the Aduana Abrade family of Brekuso.<o:p></o:p>It is the applicant’s case
that Nana Odei Kotogwene has never ceded his position to any of the
plaintiffs/respondents and that as a person seized with knowledge and functions
of the Aduana Abrade family of Brekuso .He was the proper person to speak to
the issues concerning the Aduana Abrade family of Brekuso.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>Plaintiffs
opposed the joinder on the following points:<o:p></o:p>(i)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
In terms of the capacity of the 3rd
Defendant, Plaintiff had grave issues. He stated that by the 2nd
defendant statement of defence in para 10 he has styled himself in the&nbsp; capacity of head of Aduana Abrade family of
Brekuso.&nbsp; He raised issues of how 2nd
Defendant can then join someone else in the same capacity?<o:p></o:p>Let
me say the 2nd Defendants answer to that is that the 3rd
Defendant is being joined as Abusuapanyin Odei Kotogwene as the head of family of Onyakesiasi.<o:p></o:p>(ii)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Second issue raised by the Plaintiff was the
fact that given the fact that the defendants are raising capacity one would
have naturally expected the defendants to pursue this matter of capacity rather
than seeking to join others to muddy the waters as it were. This is because if
the said application challenging their capacity finds favour with the court it
virtually grounds the instant action in other words the instant action would
stand dismissed.<o:p></o:p>This
is actually true on the authority of Stephens
v Apoh 2010 MLRG a decision of Anin Yeboah JSC.<o:p></o:p>References
were made to pictures attached by the Defendant which I have not taken into
consideration. They were neither marked nor dated and could easily have
depicted various scenes from a Kumawood film and no direct nexus was
established to the present application and none can be directly inferred from
same.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>(iii)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The Plaintiff says that if there are several
suits regarding similar issues the proper thing to be done by the Defendants is
to&nbsp; come </main>