October 27, 2022
COURT OF APPEAL
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The Court of Appeal, per Justice Richard Adjei‑Frimpong JA, considered an appeal by a police officer who sought judicial review to quash a service inquiry ruling that reduced his rank after a complaint by Yaw Sakyi and an investigation by PIPS. The sole adjudicator, ACP Kwadwo Antwi Tabi, delivered the ruling on 9 May 2017. The appellant filed his High Court application on 24 March 2020, arguing that time started only upon the Police Council’s March 2020 notification following a letter he sent in April 2018 and that internal remedies under Regulation 112 of C.I 76 had to be exhausted. An Attorney‑General’s preliminary objection that the application was out of time was sustained by the trial court. On appeal, the Court held that, under Order 55 rule 3(2) of C.I 47, time runs from the date of the adjudicator’s ruling for certiorari, found no properly pursued internal appeal delaying time, rejected estoppel, and dismissed the appeal. Presiding Justice GBIEL Suurbaareh JA and Justice Philip Bright Mensah JA concurred.
RICHARD ADJEI-FRIMPONG JA:
This appeal turns on one simple question. It is whether or not the learned trial judge was right on his decision that the appellant’s judicial review application filed on 24/3/20 to challenge the ruling of a police service inquiry against him was brought out of time. The appellant wants the question answered in the negative. The respondents of course, disagree. The events preceding the subject application had unfolded this way.
One Yaw Sakyi made a complaint bordering on professional misconduct against the appellant which was initially investigated at the Police Intelligence and Professional Misconduct (PIPS). Based on the PIPS investigations, the appellant was charged to appear before a service inquiry conducted by a sole adjudicator, one ACP Mr Kwadwo Antwi Tabi. The inquiry began on 18/04/17 and ended in the decision given on 09/05/17. The appellant was found guilty of the charges. For his punishment, in terms of the recommendation of the sole adjudicator, he suffered a reduction in rank from Chief Superintendent to Superintendent.
Expectantly, the appellant had resisted the complaint and the inquiry right from inception. Prior to the commencement of the inquiry, he had petitioned the IGP, the 1st respondent herein to intervene in the matter as he claimed he knew nothing about the subject of the complaint. It does appear however that the IGP never reacted to the petition. What is on record was a letter dated 15/1/20 in which the Ghana Police Service Council (the Council) affirmed the decision of the service inquiry. The letter titled: Petition for Review of Service Inquiry was supposed to be a response to a letter from the appellant dated 27/14/18 addressed to the Council.
The appellant invoked the judicial review jurisdiction of the trial Court praying for an order essentially to bring up the ruling of the adjudicator to be quashed. The grounds upon which the application was brought are not material to be set out in this appeal. Not much turns on the substance of the application. The trial court did not delve into any matter of substance. Before the application would be heard, the Attorney General, the 2nd respondent herein raised a preliminary objection against the hearing on the grounds that same had been brought out of time.
Having heard the arguments on the objection, the learned trial judge in a terse ruling decided the question as follows:
“I have listened to the arguments by Counsel for the Respondent on this poi