FRANCIS KWARTENG ARTHUR vs. GHANA TELECOM CO. LTD. AND ORS [2023]DLCA15137

Date	2023-02-16
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL NO H1/203/2022
Citation No.	[2023]DLCA15137

SENYO DZAMEFE JA (PRESIDING)

MERLEY A. WOOD (MRS) JA

ERIC BAAH JA

DR. JUSTICE SREM SAI FOR APPLICANT/RESPONDENT

YAW BERHENE BONSU WITH EMMANUELLA KORKOR TETTEH FOR RESPONDENT/APPELLANT

[2023]DLCA15137
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >FRANCIS
KWARTENG ARTHUR<o:p></o:p>(APPLICANT/RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>GHANA
TELECOM CO. LTD. AND ORS<o:p></o:p>(RESPONDENT/APPELLANT)<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: 0in 0in 1pt;">

<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
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solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">CIVIL
APPEAL NO H1/203/2022&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <span lang="en-DE" style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:150%;font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif;
mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Times New Roman&quot;;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;
mso-ansi-language:#2000">&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 FEBRUARY, 2023<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;DR. JUSTICE
SREM SAI FOR APPLICANT/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: 0in 0in 1pt;">

YAW BERHENE BONSU WITH EMMANUELLA KORKOR
TETTEH FOR RESPONDENT/APPELLANT<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM&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; <o:p></o:p>SENYO
DZAMEFE JA (PRESIDING), MERLEY
A. WOOD (MRS) JA, ERIC
BAAH JA<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 0in;">

<p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;border:none;
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padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:1.0pt 0in 1.0pt 0in">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p>

</div>&nbsp;&nbsp;MERLEY WOOD JA<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;The 4th Respondent/Appellant
is appealing against part of the ruling delivered on 22nd July 2021
by the High Court, Accra by awarding damages against it in favour of the
Applicant/Respondents in such generic human rights enforcement action. <o:p></o:p>The Applicant/Respondent is a
communication network subscriber to 1st Respondent’s company’s
telecommunications network with mobile number 0208131971 and 2nd
Respondent’s network with mobile number 0540180813. &nbsp;The 3rd Respondent is a company
which carries on among other businesses, information and communication
technology services while the 4th Respondent is the statutory body
established to regulate the provision of communication services and to enforce
or implement the Electronic Communications Act, 2008 (Act 775). The 5th
Respondent is the principal legal advisor to the President and the Government.<o:p></o:p>The facts leading to the instant appeal
are that&nbsp; on 23rd March 2020,
the President of the Republic of Ghana when the Covid-19 Pandemic was raging,
under section 100 of the Electronic Communications Act, 2008 (Act 775) issued
an Executive Instrument known as the Establishment of Emergency Communications
System Instrument 2020 (E1 63) which among others directed all Communication
Network Operators or Service Providers to cooperate with and to make available
to the President certain personal information in their possession to him. The
Appellant as the statutory body established to regulate the provision of
communication services in the country under the said Act had the responsibility
of ensuring compliance of the said Executive instrument. <o:p></o:p>By an Amended Originating Motion on
Notice with leave dated 23rd July 2020 for the enforcement of
Fundamental Human Rights and the corresponding affidavit the
Applicant/Respondent prayed the court for the following reliefs:<o:p></o:p>i.<span style="font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-feature-settings: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&</main>