THE REPUBLIC vs. DAVID KOBIA EXPARTE: ALVARO QUAO [2020]DLHC10457

Date	2020-06-29
Suit No.	SUIT NO.: CR/341/2019
Citation No.	[2020]DLHC10457

HER LADYSHIP JUSTICE ELLEN VIVIAN AMOAH

[2020]DLHC10457
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >THE REPUBLIC<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>DAVID KOBIA<o:p></o:p>(RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>EXPARTE: ALVARO QUAO<o:p></o:p>(APPLICANT)<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;">

</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="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;line-height:115%;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">RULING<o:p></o:p>

</div>&nbsp;“A
party who knows of an order, regardless of whether, in view of that party, the
order is null or valid, regular or irregular cannot be permitted to disobey it
by reason of what that party regards the order to be.&nbsp; It is not for that
party to choose whether or not to comply with such order.&nbsp; The order must
be complied with in totality, in all circumstances by the party concerned
subject to the party’s right to challenge the order in issue……. It is the
responsibility of and duty of the party concerned, in case that party for some
genuine reason finds compliance with the court order not possible, to
appropriately move court issuing the order and bring to the attention of the
court the reasons for non compliance.”&nbsp; -This is the
rationale for contempt proceedings as stated in the Ugandan case of &nbsp;Housing Finance Bank Ltd &amp; Another vs. Edward Musisi Miscellenous
Application 158/2010 CA&nbsp;the Canadian case of Hébert v. Procureur général de la
Province de Québec, [1966] B.R. 197,and the Ghanaian Supreme court case
of Republic vrs Bank Of Ghana And 5
Others Exparte, Benjamin Duffour (J4/34/2018)<o:p></o:p>The applicants moved a
Motion for Contempt filed on the 20/03/2019 citing the respondent for contempt
specifically the breach of the court mandatory orders and interference with the
administration of justice. <o:p></o:p>&nbsp; This an application to cite the respondent
herein for contempt.&nbsp; It is clearly the
position of the law that an application for contempt is a serious matter
indeed.&nbsp; It is quasi criminal in nature a
position reiterated in a plethora of cases including Exparte Laryea Mensah 1998/99 SCGLR, Exparte Ameyaw 1998/99 SCGLR.&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>Bamford
Addo JSC as she then was in the above cited case of Exparte Laryea Mensah had this to say about the nature of contempt
when she quoted from Oswald’s Contempt of Court third edition page 6 as
follows:<o:p></o:p>&nbsp; “To speak generally, contempt of court may be
said to be constituted by any conduct that tends to bring the authority and the
administration of the into disrepute or to disregard or to interfere with or
prejudice parties, litigant ……and during litigation”&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>&nbsp;It
should also be noted that in this proceedings the burden of proof is on the
applicant to show that the conduct of the respondent reaches the required
evidential threshold.&nbsp; The applicant must
prove the essential elements of contempt to the criminal standard being proof
beyond reasonable doubt. <o:p></o:p>&nbsp;What
are these elements of contempt? <o:p></o:p>They
are the following;<o:p></o:p>i)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
There must be a judgment or order requiring
the contemnor to do or abstained from doing something<o:p></o:p>ii)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
It must be shown that the contemnor knows
precisely what he/she is expected to do or abstained from doing.<o:p></o:p>iii)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
It must be shown that he/she failed to comply
with the terms of the court order or judgment and that this failure to comply
which in essence is disobedience is willful in nature</main>