The Court of Appeal has upheld the High Court’s ruling that Adolph Tetteh Adjei is the rightful owner of a two-acre plot of land in the prime Tse Addo area.
The Court of Appeal’s judgement, delivered on Thursday, July 4, 2024, by Justices Gifty Adjei Addo, Senyo Dzamefe, and Christopher Archer, was decided by a 2:1 majority, with Justice Dzamefe dissenting after four adjournments for judgment delivery.
This decision marks the second defeat for investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas in his attempt to contest Adjei’s ownership claim in the case titled Adolph Tetteh Adjei v Anas Aremeyaw Anas & Holy Quaye, Suit No. LD/0256/2017.
Adjei initiated the land dispute against Anas in 2017, asserting that he had legitimately acquired the two-acre plot from grantors linked to the East Dadekotopon Development Trust (EDDT).
Anas, in his defence, claimed that his grantors were a family named Ataa Tawiah Tsinaiatse.
During the High Court proceedings, Justice Anokye Gyimah initially dismissed the suit on grounds of estoppel, a decision later overturned by the Court of Appeal.
Anas’s attempts to challenge this reversal in the Supreme Court were unsuccessful, as both his certiorari application and subsequent review were dismissed.
The High Court, under Justice Amo Yartey, initially rejected Adjei’s request for an injunction against Anas, who had taken possession of the land.
However, this decision was later reversed by the Court of Appeal, effectively preventing Anas from developing the property.
Justice Amo Yartey then granted another application by Anas to dismiss the suit on estoppel grounds, a ruling quashed by the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court ordered the case to be returned to a differently constituted High Court for standard proceedings.
The case resumed at Land Court 10 under Justice Kwame Gyamfi Osei, who ruled on May 4, 2023, in favour of Adjei.
The court determined that Anas was not the rightful owner and had trespassed on the land, awarding Adjei 60,000 cedis in costs and barring Anas from any further possession or development.
Following this judgement, the High Court granted a partial stay of execution for the section of the land with Anas’s building but denied the stay for the remainder of the land, pending the final determination by the Court of Appeal.
Unhappy with the High Court’s ruling, Anas and his legal team filed an appeal.
Unfortunately for them, the Court of Appeal rejected their appeal and imposed a cost of GH¢30,000.
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