Court Rules On Prampram Stool Case

Court Rules On Prampram Stool Case



By William Yaw Owusu.

Wednesday, 03 May 2006
A HIGH Court in Accra has dismissed an application that sought to quash the entire committee report on Prampram Traditional Area Stool land in the Greater Accra Region.

The traditional area had tasked a five-member committee to look into the appropriation of the stool lands around Afienya and its surrounding communities in the 1990’s but one Emmanuel Odam Ashley and other concerned citizens in the area filed a certiorari application against the move.

In dismissing the application, Mr Justice E.F. Dzakpasu said “the applicant failed to satisfy the basic condition for invoking the supervisory jurisdiction of this court within six months from the date the said report and recommendation was made.”

“I hold that the instant application fails for want of compliance with order 55 rule three of the rules of this court and is hereby dismissed. The applicant may avail himself other remedies at law” the court held.

The court said the applicant was “clearly indolent and failed to assert his right to invoke the supervisory jurisdiction of this court timely.”

It held that the applicant failed to address the court on the issue of non-compliance with regards to time and offered no explanation as to “why this application must be heard.”

“It is important to say that where certiorari may not be an appropriate remedy, the applicant may avail himself of other reliefs as may be appropriate at a proper forum,” the court added.

The court said it was not in dispute that the applicant commenced the action on January 28, 1993, and had clearly done so out of time.

The committee, the court said, submitted its findings and recommendation on October 28, 1991, long before the action was instituted.