November 3, 2022
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
This High Court (Ho) land dispute was brought by Kofi Zilevu, head of the Zilevu family of Zilevukorpe near Tadzevu, against members of the Sabblah family of Devego (first and second defendants) and Seth Wovenu (third defendant), son of the late Prophet C.K.N. Wovenu, founder of the Apostles Revelation Society Church. Zilevu sought damages for trespass, an injunction, a declaration of title, and costs over a 60-acre parcel bounded by Sovisie, Dakpo, and Gli Agbowada families. The defendants denied the Zilevu family’s ownership, alleging that C.K.N. Wovenu purchased land from the Sabblah family in 1995, formalized by a 1998 indenture (No. RV194/2002), took possession, established a cemetery, and that the third defendant granted portions to others and reserved areas for public uses. Exhibit A, a 1998 letter from elders of the Bani Stool warning Wovenu, and the plaintiff’s own evidence recognizing Togbe Bani as grantor, showed the Bani Stool’s ownership. Because the plaintiff failed to endorse any representative capacity under Order 2 rule 4(1)(a) of CI 47, the court held he lacked capacity, struck out the writ as a nullity, and consequently struck out the counterclaim.
JUDGMENT
1 Plaintiff’s case
Per his amended writ of summons and statement of claim1
, Plaintiff’s suit against
the Defendants jointly and severally is for:
(i) Damages for trespass.
(ii) Perpetual injunction restraining the Defendants, their assigns,
workmen and servants from entering the said lands until the final
determination of the matter.
(iii) Declaration of Title to the said lands.
(iv) Cost of the suit.
Plaintiff claims to be the head of the Zilevu family of Zilevukorpe near Tadzevu,
and that he and his siblings are the third-generation of their grandfather Togbui
Kugbago who he claims first settled on a 60-acre parcel of land that was granted
to him (Togbui Kugbago) customarily by Togbui Bani I of Devego. The land in
question, the plaintiff claims, is bounded by the Sovisie family on the east, the
Dakpo family on the west; the Gli Agbowada family on the South; and the Sovisie
family on the North. According to Plaintiff, the 1
st and 2nd Defendants' family
settled at Devego-Tadzevu, a distance of two kilometres away from Zilevukope,
and so does not share boundary with Zilevukope where Plaintiff’s family settled.
The 1
st and 2nd Defendants are of the Sabblah family of Devego near Tadzevu,
whilst the 3
rd Defendant is one of the sons of the late Prophet CKN Wovenu, the
founder of the Apostles Revelation Society Church (ARS). Plaintiff claims that it is
the late CKN Wovenu who was using his influence to claim that the Defendants’
Sabblah family has alienated the land to him despite the plaintiff’s family protests
and warnings. Evident by Exhibit A, Plaintiff claims to have confronted the
Sabblah family of CKN Wovenu’s claims to have purchased the land. Plaintiff
claims further that the Sabblah family denied any such alienation of land to CKN
Wovenu; claiming further to have met with CKN Wovenu who appealed to the
plaintiff’s family to alienate some of the plaintiff’s family lands to him, as his
Church was expanding and wanted lands to develop into dwelling places for
members.
Plaintiff claims that his family together with their grantors invited CKN Wovenu
and the Sabblah family for a discussion over Wovenu’s request, but the latter failed
to avail themselves of the opportunity. Plaintiff’s case is that CKN Wovenu’s
encroachment onto their family land stopped on his death in 1998, but it was
revived around 2004/5 when Defendants started encroaching on the lands and had
not since abated despite plaintiff’s warnin