[2021]DLHC10822 Login to Read Full Case <span style="font-size: 18px !important;"><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Hebrew";color:#00B0F0">NANA ADDAI OWUSU<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew"">(PLAINTIFF/APPELLANT)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Hebrew";color:#00B0F0">vs.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Hebrew";color:#00B0F0">NANA AFARI BOAGYAN II AND OSEI BONSU ROYAL MICHAEL<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew"">(DEFENDANTS/RESPONDENTS)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">[COURT OF APPEAL, KOFORIDUAH]<o:p></o:p></span></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="text-align:center;border:none; mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Hebrew"">SUIT NO. HI/07/2020 DATE: 17<sup>TH </sup>MARCH, 2021<o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Hebrew Scholar"">COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew Scholar"">SULEMAN MUSAH FOR PLAINTIFF/APPELLANT<o:p></o:p></span></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="text-align:justify;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew Scholar"">JOSEPH KWAKU GYIMAH FOR DEFENDANTS/RESPONDENT<o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">CORAM: <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">CECILIA SOWAH J.A. (PRESIDING), ANTHONY OPPONG J.A., ANGELINA MENSAH-HOMIAH J.A.<o:p></o:p></span></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="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"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Hebrew"">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Hebrew""> </span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><u><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew"">ANTHONY OPPONG, JA<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><u><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew""> </span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew"">On or about 3<sup>rd</sup> April, 2013, the plaintiff/appellant, to be simply called appellant for purposes of this judgment, caused a writ of summons to issue against defendants/respondents who shall also for purposes of this judgment be simply called respondents.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew""> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew""> By way of reliefs, the appellant sought declaration of title and recovery of possession of all that building plot No (1) situate at Amanfrom-Nkawkaw, damages for trespass and an injunction against the respondents. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew""> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew"">The respondents traversed the claim of appellant and joined issues with him. After the trial of the case by the High Court, Nkawkaw, appellant’s case was dismissed, hence this appeal which is expressive of appellant’s dissatisfaction of the judgment dismissing his claim.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew""> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew"">For now it may be apposite to attempt a summary of the facts of the case. The appellant acquired the disputed land from the then chief of Obo called Nana Asiamah in 1983. After the land had been demarcated to appellant by elders of Kwaman upon the instructions of the chief of Obo, Nana Asiamah, appellant provided good consideration for the land. Receipts and documents evidencing the payment for the land and the acquisition of the land were issued to appellant by the chief of Obo. Appellant, who was then a practicing fetish priest took possession and practiced his ‘profession’ on the land. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew""> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew"">Ostensibly, appellant put up structures on the land for the practice of the profession whereby he housed the sick who had come to his fetish shrine for cure and healing. He also housed his servants and his gods. He even put up a structure where he kept his pigs. He claimed he kept all the documents on the land in the room where the gods were kept. He apparently, in addition, carried out other various overt acts of possession and ownership of the land for so many years without any interference from anyone.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew""> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew"">Some years after, appellant stopped the practice of fetishism and lost most of his documents covering the land he acquired. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew""> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew"">Sometime later, he was confronted by the chief of Nkawkaw who requested to see the documents covering the land the appellant was occupying, amidst threat of recovering the land from appellant in his capacity as the custodian of the land for and on behalf of Obomeng stool. As a result of the appellant’s failure to trace the documents relating to the land, he was constrained to re-purchase the land from the chief of Nkawkaw, Nana Yaw Frimpong to avoid any litigation over the land with him. Consequent upon the second acquisition, so to speak, a new site plan was made and an indenture was executed by the chief of Obomeng, after the chief of Nkawkaw had accounted for the sale of the land to the chief of Obomeng.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew""> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew"">This would have been expected to bring unimpeachable security to the appellant’s acquisition of the land but what happened soon after plunged him to the litigation herein. The appellant was in Kumasi when word got to him that the respondents were constructing a long wall through the land. The appellant complained to Police and the 1<sup>st</sup> respondent’s linguist was arrested. In trying to resolve the problem, the police and the parties to the land went to the land for inspection and in the presence of all, the appellant confirmed his acquisition of the land from the two chiefs. The reaction of 1<sup>st</sup> respondent which centered on his offer of another land to 2<sup>nd</sup> respondent settled the matter.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew""> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height:150%"><span style="font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Arial Hebrew""> However, after some time, contrary to the assurance 1<sup>st</sup> respondent gave at the meeting on the land, 2<sup>nd</sup> respondent was allocated a portion of the appellant’s land by 1<sup>st</sup> respondent and 2<sup>nd</sup> respondent proceeded to grade a large portion of the land on the authority of 1<sup>st</sup> respondent and the feud that ensued culminated in the institution of the instant action.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:justify;line-height: