ALHAJI IDDRISU OSUMANU v. ALHAJI MOROU MANHEAN

JUDGEMENT

MARFUL-SAU, JA:-

This appeal is taken against the judgment of the High Court, Accra delivered on the 19th January,2016. In the said judgment the trial court dismissed the entire action of the plaintiff, who is the appellant herein. The trial court also dismissed in part the counterclaim of the defendant who is the respondent in this appeal. The brief facts of the case are that, the appellant claimed he handed over an amount of GH₵ 68, 580.00 the equivalent of US$ 31,900 at the time, to the respondent who was his business partner to transfer the said sum to another business partner in Indonesia. The respondent later informed the appellant that the bag in which he put the money had been stolen. According to the respondent, the appellant and himself had a common bag in which they kept their monies and this bag was kept in the shop of one Alhaji Mohammed. The respondent claimed that at the time the bag was stolen he had other monies in different currencies in the bag. The appellant then took respondent to several mallams in search of the stolen bag but to no avail. The matter was later reported to the Police for investigations.

From these facts the appellant caused a writ to be issued against the respondent claiming (a) an amount of US$ 31,900.00 or the cedi equivalent being an amount owed to him by the respondent; (b)interest at the dollar rate from 3/10/13 till date of final payment and (c) costs including lawyer's fees. The respondent counterclaimed against the appellant on the above facts for (1) an order for the appellant to refund an amount of GH₵36,000.00, which was respondent share of business profits; (2) an order for the appellant to refund an amount of GH₵ 9,200.00 being money he lent to the appellant;

(3) a declaration that the business that resulted in the missing money was illegal and same is against public policy; (4) any further reliefs that might be found due to the respondent and (5) costs.

As already indicated at the end of the trial the trial court dismissed appellant's claims and entered judgment in part for the respondent. It is against the said judgment that the appellant has mounted this appeal on the following grounds:-

a. The trial Judge erred when he held that plaintiff did not give defendant either $31,900.00 or GH₵ 68,580.00 when the defendant himself admitted same in his affidavit in opposition tendered in evidence as exhibit 'C'.

b. The trial Judge erred when he held that defendant had proved that the money was s