Afenyo-Markins and Sammy Gyamfi
The High Court, General Jurisdiction 1, has struck out a GH¢15 million defamation suit filed by Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin against Ghana Gold Board Chief Executive Officer Sammy Gyamfi, ruling that the writ was incurably defective and incompetent.
The court held that the writ was incapable of properly invoking its jurisdiction, bringing the proceedings to an end on the basis of the procedural defect.
In reaching its decision, the court relied on the cases of Coleman v Newmont and Owusu Domena, concerning the applicable procedural rules and the need to raise objections to court proceedings timeously.
The ruling means the suit, in its present form, is no longer pending before the court.
The decision, however, does not by itself amount to a determination of whether the alleged defamatory statements were made, whether they were defamatory or whether either party was liable for defamation.
Further details of the original claim, including the specific statements complained of, the date the suit was filed and the precise procedural defect identified by the court, were not contained in the information available for this report.
