CHIEF APPEALS AGAINST HIGH COURT RULING

THE Ablekuma Mantse and Sempe Atofo in the Greater Accra Region, Nii Larbi Mensah IV, has appealed against a Kumasi High Court order to the National House of Chiefs (NHC) to delete his name from the register of the house because it was not properly done .
Nii Mensah, known in private life as Francis Nii Aryee Addo-Quaye, is praying the Court of Appeal to set aside the lower court’s decision, given on June 22, 2007, as well as the dismissal of the application for an order of mandamus against him.
He is also asking that costs of ¢20 million awarded against him should be set aside, and rather made in his favour.
The notice of appeal, dated June 27, 2007 was filed on June 26, 2007 by Mr A.A. Somuah-Asamoah, counsel for the interested party/appellant.
The Kumasi court, presided over by Mr Justice Kwame Ansu-Gyeabour also asked the registrar of the Ga Traditional Council to take prompt steps to get a new panel to hear the case, titled, “E.T.A. Nettey Vrs Adjin Tetteh and Seven Others” in connection with the Ablekuma Chieftaincy affair.
The court’s order followed an application for an order of mandamus filed by one Adjin Tetteh praying the court to remove the name of Francis Nii Aryee Addo-Quaye, as Chief of Ablekuma under the stool name, Nii Larbie Mensah IV from the register of the house and instead insert his (Adjin Tetteh’s) name in line with his recognition by the Judicial Committee of the Traditional Council in October, 1997.
Adjin Tetteh contended that he was nominated, elected and enstooled as Chief of Ablekuma and that the Ga Traditional Council had recognised him as such by a judgement.
According to him, he became aware that Nii Larbie had been given recognition by the NHC as substantive Chief of Ablekuma through a publication in the Daily Graphic of June 24, 2006.
In a supplementary affidavit that he filed, he declared that since the insertion and deletion of names from the register of the NHC was an administrative act, when it was wrongly effected the court was clothed with authority to enquire into it.
He said it was his name that should have been inserted into the register and not that of Nii Larbie Mensah.
In his affidavit in opposition, Nii Mensah stated that his name was inserted in the NHC register based on the advice of the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs.
He also contended that, he was properly nominated, elected and enstooled as the Ablekuma Mantse and Sempe Atofo in accordance with Ga custom.
With regard to the judgement of the Ga Traditional Council judgement mentioned by the applicant, the respondent explained that it was quashed by an Accra High Court on November 11, 1998 and that an appeal filed against the High Court ruling was also dismissed on July 20, 2000 by the Court of Appeal.
He, therefore, stated that the “the allegation by the applicant that the research committee of the Regional House of Chiefs undertook an erroneous administrative act is untenable and misconceived”.
In his ruling, Justice Ansu-Gyeabour said, “I am of the considered view that three main issues are raised for consideration in the facts of the case”.
After considering the arguments of the parties, Justice Ansu-Gyeabour said it was a fact that the court had no power under the Constitution to determine at first instance any matter affecting chieftaincy.
He said it was therefore plain that the court had no power to decide that any of the two parties was properly nominated, elected and enstooled as the Chief of Ablekuma.
The judge, however, indicated that in matters of administration like the case in question the courts had the power to go into them to straighten matters.
Mr Justice Ansu-Gyeabour quoted from Article 23 of the Constitution which stated that “administrative bodies should deal fairly and reasonably with members of the public” and said, “To me it is manifestly clear that by basing its entry in the national register of the house on wrong information from the regional house of chiefs, the officers of the NHC did not act equitably, fairly and in a just manner”.
In his grounds of appeal, Nii Mensah said the High Court judge erred in stating that it was wrong for the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs to have said in their letter dated February 24, 2006 that there was no petition or writ against his enstoolment.
He said the judge erred in holding that the study which the Research Committee of the NHC did was based on a false premise by the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs.
The appellant said the judge further erred in holding that then NHC based its entry in the national register of chiefs on wrong information.
He said the judge erred in holding that the method adopted by the authorities of the Ga Traditional Council and the Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs in forwarding his name to the NHC for processing and subsequent entry into the national register of chiefs was not correct.
“The learned High Court judge erred in holding that the NHC did not act equitably, fairly and in a just manner”, he said and added that the judge wrongly exercised his discretion in awarding costs against him.