ELLUAH v. ANKUMAH

JUDGMENT OF OWUSU J.

The plaintiff’s claim is for the specific performance of an oral agreement for the assignment by the defendant to the plaintiff of all that piece of land lying in the North Chapel Hill Estate at Takoradi and bounded on the north by a road, on the east by plot No. 110, and on the west by plot No. 107 together with uncompleted premises thereon at a value of N¢4,000.00.

The defendant was formerly in the employment of the Ghana National Trading Corporation hereafter called G.N.T.C. as a store-keeper. In pursuance of an oral agreement made during the month of January 1968, the amount of N¢4,000.00 was to be paid to the district manager of the G.N.T.C. in satisfaction of a debt due and owing by the defendant to the G.N.T.C. On or about 18 January 1968, the plaintiff made an initial payment of N¢2,000.00 to the district manager of the said corporation in the presence of the defendant and other officers of the said corporation, and the assignment was to be completed on the full payment of the total purchase price of N¢4,000.00. The original document of title to the said land was deposited by the defendant with the district manager, Mr. N.D.C. Korney, to be collected by the plaintiff upon the full payment of the amount. A document was prepared by the plaintiff’s solicitor in furtherance of the oral agreement. The plaintiff has paid the full amount of N¢4,000.00 to the said corporation; she has collected the original document of title from the district manager and has signed the deed of assignment, but the defendant has refused and refuses to take any steps towards the completion of his part of the said agreement.

[p.797]

The defendant avers, inter alia, that at no time has he verbally or otherwise agreed to assign his interest in the property described in the statement of claim to the plaintiff nor was he present when the sum of N¢2,000.00 or any sum at all was paid to the G.N.T.C. as alleged. The defendant states further that the documents of title in respect of the property were surrendered to the manager of the corporation, Takoradi, as security for the sum owed to the said corporation when the defendant was about to travel out of Takoradi. The defendant further states that on hearing that the plaintiff had paid certain sums into the defendant's account at the G.N.T.C., he on 14 March 1968 addressed a letter to the plaintiff advising her that she had not been authorised by him to make such payments. Similarly, the defendant addressed a