Correspondence from Central Region

The Court of Appeal has overturned the judgment of the High court in the land litigation case involving Gomoa Fetteh stool and Fetteh Kakraba.

The presiding justices: Justice George Kingsley Koomson, Justice P. Bright Mensah and Justice Jennifer Dadzie set aside the judgment of the lower court, and dismissed all the claims of the respondents indorsed on their writ of summons.

The Court also awarded a cost of Ghc20,000 to the plaintiffs and indicated that the said amount should be paid to the respondents.

The court stated that overall, it holds that the Gomoa Fetteh chiefs (Appellants) had made a case strong enough to compel the court to interfere with the judgement of the lower court. Based on that, the court stated that the appeal by stool succeeds in its entirety.

“By the powers conferred on this court by rule 32(1) of the court of appeal Rules, 1997[C.I 19] we hereby set aside the judgment of the lower court and dismiss all the claims of the respondents indorsed on their writ of summons,” the court stated.

Background

In 2014, the Nananom of Fetteh Kakraba led by Nana Essel Amoaqunadoh III, Ebusuapanin Kobina Okokye and Omankrado of Fetteh Kakraba Nana Yaw Kwadromanu II, summoned the Gomoa Fetteh Stool headed by the Late Nana Abor Yamoah II to the Agona Swedru and Winneba High Court respectively claiming ownership of Fetteh Kakraba, Tuansah, Nkwantana, Abekum, Mamfam lands.

In the course of the proceedings, the Nananom of the Gomoa Fetteh argued that all the communities are under Gomoa Fetteh Stool since their Land are stool lands and not family Land.

At the end of the trial, the lower Court delivered its judgement on the 13th of December, 2023 in favor of the Nananom of Fetteh Kakraba

The High Court made its findings that the Fetteh Kakraba belonged to Fetteh Kakraba, the royal Essel Amoaqunadoh Twidan Family of Fetteh Kakraba .

After the ruling, the Fetteh Kakraba chiefs further went to the Winneba High Court, filed for a restraining order asking the Court to restrain the following people, Richard Kwesi Mansah, Akwesi Alhaji, Charles Graham, Nii Bokoboko, Samuel Bortey, Issaka and Haruna from selling their land because they are land guards.

The Fetteh Kakraba chiefs further took the matter to the Court of Appeal after several attempt to stop the trespassers from operating on their land proved futile. But the defendants also argued that they are natives and sub-chiefs of Gomoa Fetteh Stool so they have the right to sell and operate on Fetteh Kakraba land and the remaining communities.