BENJAMIN DUFFOUR v BANK OF GHANA & ANOTHER
February 9, 2022
SUPREME COURT
CORAM
- PWAMANG J.S.C., (PRESIDING) DORDZIE J.S.C. OWUSU J.S.C. LOVELACE-JOHNSON J.S.C. PROF. MENSA-BONSU J.S.C
Areas of Law
- Tort Law
- Evidence Law
- Media Law
February 9, 2022
SUPREME COURT
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The Supreme Court of Ghana, per Prof. H. J. A. N. Mensa-Bonsu JSC, dismissed an appeal arising from a defamation suit against Graphic Communications Groups Daily Graphic over a 30 June 2008 article reporting that the Bank of Ghana had dismissed Senior Staff Association leaders amid unionization controversy. The article named Chairman Mr. Benjamin Duffour and Secretary Mr. Frank Mensah, alleged security would bar them from the premises, and claimed ID cards were taken. While certain details (dismissal letters, ID cards) were inaccurate, the plaintiffs employment had in fact been terminated that day, and he learned of the story when security prevented entry. The High Court found Daily Graphic liable and awarded damages, but the Court of Appeal reversed, holding the article was not defamatory and protected by qualified privilege. The Supreme Court affirmed, reasoning that ordinary readers do not draw the technical distinction between dismissal and termination, the articles tenor was sympathetic, the occasion was privileged in the public interest, and no malice was proven. The appeal accordingly failed.
PROF. MENSA-BONSU (MRS.) JSC:-
This is a case that arose because a newspaper published an article which was intended to arouse sympathy for the leadership of the Senior Staff Association, wrongly described as a “trade union” of the Bank of Ghana. The article, apparently based on information from “reliable sources”, ended up
making some inaccurate statements that have landed the newspaper in difficulty and formed the basis of this action in defamation.
Background
The plaintiff/respondent/appellant (hereinafter referred to as ‘plaintiff’ to avoid confusion, as the parties reversed roles in the Court of Appeal and in the instant appeal) commenced action on 4th March 2011 against the 1st and 2nddefendants jointly and severally for a publication in the 30th June, 2008, issue of 2nd defendant’s newspaper, ‘Daily Graphic’. The High Court found the 1st defendant – Bank of Ghana - not liable for the publication, and so the Bank did not join in the appeal against the decision of the High Court. This left the 2nd defendant as the sole appellant in the Court of Appeal, and consequently, the sole respondent in the instant appeal before this honourable court. For this reason, the respondent herein will also be referred to as ‘2nd defendant’, or simply ‘defendant’ as the circumstances dictate.
Facts
The facts of the case were that on 30thJune, 2008, ‘Daily Graphic’ published a story concerning the plaintiff captioned “Bank of Ghana dismisses two trade union leaders”. The headline of the story appeared on the front page of the newspaper, but the story itself was in the inside pages, at page 24. The 2nd defendant admitted publishing the story part of which read,
“According to reliable sources at the bank the
Chairman, Mr. Benjamin Duffour and the Secretary,
Mr. Frank Mensah were handed their dismissal
letters last Friday and their identity cards which
allowed them entry into the banks premises taken
from them”.
Neither the statement that they had been handed “dismissal letters” nor that their identity cards had been taken from them, as the publication alleged, was true. What was true, though, was that the 1st defendant had acted to relieve the two employees of their jobs. The publication further made an allegation that “the security personnel of the bank had been given copies of the dismissal letters”. This also proved to be untrue. The story also claimed that security personnel of 1st defendant had been instructed not to let the two men into the Bank premises