ROYAL BENEFICIARIES ASSOCIATION vs. PHILOMENA ADOTSOE ANKAMAFIO & 3 ORS [2023]DLSC15161

Date	2023-05-10
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL NO. J4/74/2021
Citation No.	[2023]DLSC15161

YEBOAH CJ (PRESIDING)

PWAMANG JSC

AMEGATCHER JSC

PROF. KOTEY JSC

PROF. MENSA-BONSU (MRS.) JSC

F. K. YEBOAH ESQ. FOR PLAINTIFF/APPELLANT/APPELLANT

JUSTICE ADUSA-POKU ESQ. FOR DEFENDANTS/RESPONDENTS/ RESPONDENTS

<p class="mb-5" id="contentDlCitation"  hidden>[2023]DLSC15161</p>
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" ><span style="font-size: 18px !important;"><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;
color:#00B0F0;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">ROYAL BENEFICIARIES ASSOCIATION<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center"><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;
mso-ansi-language:EN-US">(APPELLANT)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;
color:#00B0F0;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">vs.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;
color:#00B0F0;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">PHILOMENA ADOTSOE ANKAMAFIO &amp; 3 ORS<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center"><i><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;
mso-ansi-language:EN-US">(DEFENDANTS /RESPONDENTS/RESPONDENTS)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family:
&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">[SUPREME COURT, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family:
&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">&nbsp;</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: 0in 0in 1pt;">

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;
mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:
107%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">CIVIL APPEAL NO.
J4/74/2021&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;&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: 10TH MAY 2023<o:p></o:p></span></p>

</div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
line-height:107%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">CORAM<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;
mso-ansi-language:EN-US">YEBOAH CJ (PRESIDING), PWAMANG JSC, AMEGATCHER JSC,
PROF. KOTEY JSC, PROF. MENSA-BONSU (MRS.) JSC<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 0in;">

<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;border:none;mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:1.0pt 0in 1.0pt 0in"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
107%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;mso-ansi-language:EN-US">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>

</div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:115%"><b><u><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;
mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">PWAMANG JSC:-<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:115%"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">My Lords,
this is a case that commenced in the High Court on 11th January, 2007 but
experienced inordinate delay in the prosecution of the appeal to this court
such that, more than ten years back, the points of law that arise in the case
were determined by the Supreme Court in a different case. If the parties and
their counsel had used that final position of the law as stated in that earlier
case&nbsp; as a guide, this case ought to have
been amicably settled long ago to make this judgment unnecessary. Then, in 2013,
the Supreme Court applied that&nbsp; precedent
in another case, this time, involving this same plaintiff/appellant/appellant
(the plaintiff) before us on a matter on almost all fours with this case, yet
the case was not settled out of court. We do not know the reason for this
appeal being pressed to the end after the parties themselves initially showed
no interest in it, but the reality is, that the value of whatever money may be
gained or saved by our decision today would not be what it would have been if
the parties had settled the case amicably back then. In this judgment, we shall
use the current denomination of the cedi since our currency was demonetised
after the transaction subject matter of this case was entered into.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:115%"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">The
background of this case is that, small traders in our society have always had
challenges accessing bank credit to expand their trading activities. In 2005,
the plaintiff and the Ghana Commercial Bank (now GCB Bank) identified that need
and decided to turn it into a business opportunity by assisting small traders
in Accra to access credit&nbsp; and to also
make margins for themselves. The bank dealt with a number of small traders
associations including Mayekom Cloth Sellers Association, Ahenfie Cloth Sellers
Association and the plaintiff herein. These associations that were registered
as companies limited by guarantee were stated to be welfare associations
established to address the welfare needs of their members. As part of their
activities, they cooperated with the GCB Bank and obtained loans at reasonable
rates of interest to be shared to their members as working capital. However,
the manner the leaders of the associations went about these otherwise
legitimate business ventures landed all of them in litigations as, about one
year after they disbursed small loans to individual traders, the Courts,
especially in Accra, became inundated with suits instituted by the leaders to
recover payments from the traders. Thus, this well-intended initiative for the
economic empowerment of small traders turned out to be costly to them. This
case is only one of the several cases the plaintiff and the other traders
associations filed.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:115%"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">The facts
here are that, on 1st December, 2005, the plaintiff contracted a loan of
GHS300,000.00 from the GCB Bank, out of which it on-lent GHS50,000.00 to the
1st defendant/respondent/respondent (the 1st defendant). The loan was to be
repaid with interest within one year. The remaining part of the main loan from
the bank was supposed to have been given to other traders. At the trial, an
official from the bank testified and explained how the transaction between the
bank and the plaintiff was configured. Though the letter granting the loan to
the plaintiff stated the rate of interest as 27% per anum, a schedule of 52
weekly instalment repayment was worked out which, if followed, was expected to
make the repayment more tolerable as the interest was calculated on only the
outstanding balances of the principal. By that schedule, which was tendered in
evidence, the total main loan and interest repayment over the 52 weeks came to
GHS343,093.76. A facility fee of 1% and GHS100 processing fee were charged by
the bank for the main loan of GHS300,000.00. The bank left it wholly to the
plaintiff to set the terms on which it on-lent the loan to its members and this
was where the problems arose.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:115%"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:
115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,serif;mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">The
plaintiff in this case charged the 1st defendant GHS3,500.00 as collateral,
processing and legal fees for the loan of GHS50,000.00. The plaintiff also
received advance repayment of GHS7,500.00 from the 1st defendant before a
cheque for the loan of GHS50,000.00 was handed to her. Thus, in effect, the
amount of the loan was GHS42,500.00. Meanwhile, the plaintiff collected the
title deed to the house of the 1st defendant to be used as part of the
collateral with the bank to secure the main loan. Then, the schedule of weekly
repayment the plaintiff set for the 1st defendant was GHS1,500.00 per week for
52 weeks and this made the total amount payable by her to the plaintiff for the
loan principal and interest to be GHS78,000.00. From these figures, the 1st
defendant was given a sixth of the main loan, so if we calculate her direct
responsibility for repayment according to the bank’s schedule, she would have
had to pay GHS57,182.29 for principal and interest, if she ha</main>