PATRICK LIBERTY AGBO vs. SAPE AGBO MEMORIAL HOSPITAL LTD AND DR. BEN AGBENU [2019]DLCA8869

Date	2019-12-18
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL NO: H1/04/2019
Citation No.	[2019]DLCA8869

MABEL M. AGYEMANG (MRS.) JA (PRESIDING)

ALEX B. POKU-ACHEAMPONG JA

MERLEY A. WOOD (MRS.) JA

RAYMOND AKPATSI FOR PLAINTIFF /APPELLANT.

ROBERT AGBENU FOR DEFENDANTS/RESPONDENTS.

[2019]DLCA8869
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >PATRICK LIBERTY AGBO<o:p></o:p>(PLAINTIFF/APPELLANT)<o:p></o:p><span lang="EN-CA" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;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">vs.<o:p></o:p>SAPE AGBO MEMORIAL HOSPITAL LTD AND DR. BEN
AGBENU<o:p></o:p>(DEFENDANTS /RESPONDENTS)<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>[COURT
OF APPEAL, HO]<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">

CIVIL APPEAL NO:
H1/04/2019&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; &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: 18TH DECEMBER, 2019<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>RAYMOND
AKPATSI FOR 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">

ROBERT AGBENU FOR DEFENDANTS/RESPONDENTS.<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM: <o:p></o:p>MABEL
M. AGYEMANG (MRS.) JA (PRESIDING), ALEX B. POKU-ACHEAMPONG JA, MERLEY A. WOOD
(MRS.) JA<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</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 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">

<p class="MsoNormal" 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:0cm;mso-padding-alt:1.0pt 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p>

</div>AGYEMANG JA:<o:p></o:p>In this appeal against the judgment of the High Court
Denu, the plaintiff/appellant seeks the following orders from this court:<o:p></o:p>That the defendants/respondents be made to pay the
plaintiff/appellant his entitlements, and a further order enhancing the quantum
of damages, costs and the exiting package of the appellant.<o:p></o:p>The facts of this
matter are straightforward.<o:p></o:p>The plaintiff/appellant (hereafter referred to
alternately as the plaintiff, or the appellant), was the employee of the first
defendant/respondent (hereafter referred to alternately as the first defendant
or first respondent), a hospital. The plaintiff was employed as a Laboratory Technician
in April 1995 per letter Exhibit E, and placed in charge of the hospital’s
laboratory. The second defendant/respondent (second defendant, or second
respondent) is the Medical Director of the hospital in charge of administration,
and responsible for administrative decisions at the hospital. On 21st
May 2014, the first defendant by letter Exhibit A, under the hand of the second
defendant, informed the plaintiff that it intended to modernise the laboratory.
For this project, it was stated in the letter that the first defendant would
engage another Laboratory Technician to reorganise the laboratory. The first
defendant therefore asked the plaintiff to proceed on his annual leave in order
to give the new Laboratory Technician a free hand to undertake the modernising
project. A few weeks later: on 6th June 2014, the first defendant by
another letter Exhibit B, under the hand of the second defendant, informed the
plaintiff that certain underhand dealings by the plaintiff (malfeasance) had
been uncovered in his absence from the laboratory, for which reason, he was
summarily dismissed. <o:p></o:p>It was the case of the plaintiff that by reason of
his summary dismissal, he had lost his livelihood, having been deprived of his
salary of GHC1,095 as well as rent allowance of GHC60 per month (the loss of
the latter was communicated to the plaintiff by letter Exhibit D). It was also his
case that the first defendant had failed to honour its promise contained in the
first defendant’s letter to him Exhibit C to pay him end-of-service benefits of
GHC20,000 as well as GHC400 per month upon retirement. This promise had been
communicated to him by letter dated 30th May 2011. Lastly, the
plaintiff demanded the payment of his SSNIT contributions from 2010 to the date
of the commencement of the suit.<o:p></o:p>The plaintiff, fifty-seven years old at the time of
his dismissal, the father of six with three children in school, who had served
the institution for nineteen years in official and alleged unofficial
capacities with alleged efficiency, honesty and utmost good faith, in reaction
to the summary dismissal, sued out a writ of summons against the first and
second defendants/respondents. By this action, the plaintiff claimed inter alia,
general damages for unfair dismissal, a declaration that the said unlawful
dismissal is null and void, an order for the defendant to pay the plaintiff’s
SSNIT contributions from 2010 up to the date of the commencement of the suit
with interest thereon, and an order to compel the defendant to pay the
plaintiff promised end-of-service benefits.<o:p></o:p>The defendants joined issue with the plaintiff on
all his pleadings and alleged that the plaintiff had been dismissed, because in
his absence from the laboratory, it had been found that he collected unauthorised
monies at the laboratory. These were monies that ought allegedly to have been
paid to the accountant. The defendant also alleged that the parties had agreed
that the plaintiff would receive an end of service benefit instead of SSNIT
contributions, and that his conduct leading to the summary dismissal was what
had deprived him of what would have been due him upon his retirement.<o:p></o:p>The matter went through a full trial, and the court
gave its judgment at the conclusion of the trial. In the said judgment of the
court below, the court found that the dismissal of the plaintiff was unlawful
for which he was given damages of GHC5,000. The court also awarded him
GHC10,000 as an exiting package taking into consideration his nineteen years of
service with costs of GHC2000. The learned trial judge however neglected to
make any order with regard to the SSNIT contributions saying: “I leave the
issue of SSNIT contribution as it falls within the realm of criminal
prosecution”.<o:p></o:p>It is against the quantum of damages, entitlements
and costs that the instant appeal has been brought on the following grounds:<o:p></o:p>