GEORGE OSEI AKWASI vs. ALEX KWASI ADJEI & 6 ORS [2019]DLCA8714

Date	2019-05-16
Suit No.	SUIT NO.: H1/128/14
Citation No.	[2019]DLCA8714

HONYENUGA J.A. (PRESIDING)

TORKORNOO J. A

GAISIE J.A.

MR. KWAME ANKAMA OFEI BADU FOR THE PLAINTIFF/APPELLANT

NO LEGAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR THE DEFENDANTS /RESPONDENTS

[2019]DLCA8714
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >GEORGE OSEI AKWASI<o:p></o:p><w:sdtpr></w:sdtpr>(PLAINTIFF/APPELLANT)<o:p></o:p><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;
 mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;
 color:#00B0F0;mso-ansi-language:EN-GB">vs.<o:p></o:p>ALEX KWASI ADJEI &amp; 6 ORS<o:p></o:p>(DEFENDANTS/RESPONDENTS)<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</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;
 padding:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">
 SUIT NO.: H1/128/14&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &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: 16TH MAY, 2019<o:p></o:p>
 </div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>MR. KWAME ANKAMA OFEI BADU FOR THE PLAINTIFF/APPELLANT<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
 padding:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">
 NO LEGAL
 REPRESENTATIVE FOR THE DEFENDANTS /RESPONDENTS<o:p></o:p>
 </div><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;
 mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;
 mso-ansi-language:EN-GB">CORAM:<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
 padding:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">
 HONYENUGA J.A.
 (PRESIDING), TORKORNOO J. A, GAISIE J.A.<o:p></o:p>
 </div>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
 padding:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">
 <p class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0cm;margin-bottom:
 .0001pt;mso-add-space:auto;text-align:center;line-height:normal;mso-pagination:
 none;mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:
 solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p>
 </div>TORKORNOO, J. A:<o:p></o:p>This
is an appeal from the high court, land division, Accra. The Plaintiff/Appellant
and 1st Defendant/Respondent agreed that they had a close
relationship for more than a decade before the facts that led to this dispute
occurred. While the Appellant described the 1st Respondent as his
houseboy and caretaker of his property, the 1st Respondent described
himself as a friend to the Appellant. The other Respondents are tenants in the
subject matter of the dispute.<o:p></o:p>It
was undisputed in the high court that the land with building known as House No
C580/14, Dzorwulu belongs to the Appellant. It was also not contested that the Appellant
had a one-storey building on the land as at 2007. It is also not contested that
by 2010, the Appellant’s house had been pulled down by the 1st Respondent.
In it’s place, the 1st Respondent had constructed a hostel
comprising 23 rooms. He did this in the absence of the Appellant who was then
living in the Netherlands. <o:p></o:p>It
is the destruction of Appellant’s house and construction of the hostel thereon
by 1st Respondent, and the taking over of the land with the new
building by 1st Respondent that led to this dispute. <o:p></o:p>What
was contested in the dispute was whether the Appellant authorized the 1st
Respondent to pull down his building and construct the hostel, and whether the
1st Respondent should be allowed to remain in exclusive control of
the hostel and collect rents from it to set off the cost of the construction. <o:p></o:p>It
was the case of the Appellant that when he travelled to Ghana from the
Netherlands some time in 2010 and found that his house had been pulled down, a
hostel constructed in its stead and tenants in the building, he tried to locate
the 1st Respondent who had been the caretaker for the building.&nbsp; The 1st Respondent had gone into
hiding. According to the Appellant, he had not consented to the demolition and
rebuilding of his house, and he searched for the 1st Respondent to
account for this state of affairs. He reported the 1st Respondent to
the police, and again sued him at the Kaneshie district court for recovery of
possession of the house. <o:p></o:p>The
judgment obtained from the Kaneshie court was later set aside and he commenced
this new case in the high court for the following reliefs:<o:p></o:p>