NANA KWASI DARKO II vs. SAMUEL KPAKPO ALLOTEY & 5ORS & NANA AKWASI DARKO II [2021]DLCA11789

Date	2021-12-09
Suit No.	SUIT NO. H1/168/2021
Citation No.	[2021]DLCA11789

WELBOURNE (MRS)

J.A. (PRESIDING)

ARYENE (MRS)

J.A.

BAAH

KWAME FOSU GYEABOUR FOR PLAINTIFF/RESPONDENT

NO LEGAL REPRESENTATION FOR APPLICANT/RESPONDENT

[2021]DLCA11789
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >NANA KWASI DARKO II<o:p></o:p>(PLAINTIFF/RESPONDENT/APPELLANT)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>SAMUEL KPAKPO ALLOTEY &amp; 5ORS<o:p></o:p>(DEFENDANTS)<o:p></o:p>&amp;<o:p></o:p>NANA AKWASI DARKO II<o:p></o:p>(APPLICANT/RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>[COURT
OF APPEAL, 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;">

SUIT NO. H1/168/2021&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: 9TH DECEMBER
2021<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL<o:p></o:p>KWAME FOSU GYEABOUR FOR PLAINTIFF/RESPONDENT<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;">

NO LEGAL REPRESENTATION FOR
APPLICANT/RESPONDENT<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM<o:p></o:p>WELBOURNE
(MRS), J.A. (PRESIDING), ARYENE (MRS), J.A., BAAH, J.A.<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:normal;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>BAAH, J.A<o:p></o:p>INTRODUCTION<o:p></o:p>The
Plaintiff/Respondent/Appellant (hereafter Appellant) instituted the instant
action in his capacity as the chief of Mayera Owuraman Stool on 17th
March 2020. The reliefs he seeks jointly and severally against the Defendants,
and which are relevant to this appeal, will be laid out in due course. Before
hostilities could begin between Appellant and Defendants, the
Applicant/Respondent (hereafter Respondent), bearing the same name as Appellant
save that his “Kwasi” begins with an “A” (Akwasi), and known in private life as
Dr. B. K. Kuma, applied to join the suit as 7th Defendant. The
application was backed by 1st Defendant, but resolutely opposed by
Appellant. <o:p></o:p>In
its ruling of 20th July 2020, the trial court granted the
application and constituted the Respondent the 7th Defendant.
Appellant’s grieve against the ruling resulted in the instant appeal. The
appeal has slated for our determination as to whether the joinder of Respondent
who claims the same chiefly status and capacity as the Appellant, raises a
cause or matter affecting chieftaincy, which is a statutorily forbidden
territory for the trial High Court. <o:p></o:p>Secondly,
we are to determine as between the Appellant who is a gazetted chief of Mayera
Owuraman Stool with his name on the National Register of Chiefs, and
Respondent, whose claim to the same status and capacity is founded on his
affidavit evidence of prior enstoolment and recognition by the Ga Traditional
Council, has capacity to sue and be sued in respect of Mayera Owuraman
Stool Lands. The legal context for our determination is the proper criteria for
determining whether a suit raises a cause or matter affecting chieftaincy, and
as to the proper standards precedent for joining a party to a suit. <o:p></o:p>We
will first state out the grounds of appeal before their determination. It is
noted that whereas counsel for Appellant filed his written submission on 1st
February 2021, there was no record of a written submission by Respondent or his
counsel at the time the record of appeal was taken for judgment.<o:p></o:p>GROUNDS OF APPEAL<o:p></o:p>The two grounds of appeal
are as follows:<o:p></o:p><span 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-US">a.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The trial court erred in law when it failed to hold
that the application by the applicant/Respondent to be joined to the suit
raises matters of chieftaincy which the trial court had no jurisdiction to
determine but went ahead to join applicant/Respondent as the 7th
defendant in the suit.<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;<span 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-US">b.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The trial court erred in law in failing to hold that
the Plaintiff/Appellant who had produced Extract from the National Registrar of
Chiefs and a Gazette Notification as the chief of Mayera Owuraman Stool is the
one to sue and be sued in respect of Mayera Owuraman Stool land at the trial
court but wrongly joined the applicant/Respondent to the suit.<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;The
facts and law relating to the two grounds of appeal are interconnected. As a
result, the two grounds of appeal shall be dealt with together.<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;SUBMISSION OF APPELLANT’S
COUNSEL<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;