THE REPUBLIC v THE HIGH COURT (COMMERCIAL DIVISION 9) ACCRA EX PARTE: ECOBANK GHANA LIMITED & 2 ORS

KULENDI JSC:-

INTRODUCTION

The Applicant herein has invoked our supervisory jurisdiction pursuant to article 132 of the Constitution and Rule 61 (1) of the Supreme Court Rules.

The antecedent contentions that sparked the instant application are that the 1st Interested Party is the judgment creditor in Suit No.: CM/RPC/0771/17, having obtained judgment against the 2nd Interested Party in the High Court Commercial Division 9, Accra, for the recovery of a judgment sum on 4th December, 2018 and 14th February, 2019. Consequently, an entry of judgment was filed for the sum of One Million and Seventy-Nine Thousand, Two Hundred and One Ghana Cedis and Fifty-Eight Pesewas (GH¢ 1,079,201.58). Subsequently, the 1st Interested Party obtained and served an order for garnishee nisi on the Applicant herein to appear before the High Court on 16th December, 2019 to show cause why monies standing to the credit of the 2nd Interested Party and held with the Applicant should not be paid to the 1st Interested Party (the judgment creditor therein) in satisfaction of the judgment debt.

Upon the failure of the Applicant to appear before the Court, the orders for Garnishee were made absolute and thus the Applicant became liable to pay the judgment sum to the 1st Interested Party. Claiming that the actual funds

held on behalf of the judgment creditor was the sum of One Hundred and Twenty-Two Thousand, One Hundred and Ninety-Five Ghana Cedis, Sixty Pesewas (GH¢122,195.60), the Applicant paid the said sum to the 1st Interested Party (judgment creditor) but failed to pay up the balance of Nine Hundred and Seventy-Five Thousand and Five Ghana Cedis, Ninety-Seven Pesewas (GH¢ 975,005.97) outstanding on the garnishee order absolute.

To enforce the orders for garnishee absolute for the outstanding sums, the 1st Interested Party applied and obtained orders dated 28th July, 2020, for garnishee nisi against the Bank of Ghana to attach funds of the Applicant held with the Bank of Ghana.

The Applicant filed a double-barreled motion to stay proceedings and set aside the order for garnishee nisi which sought to attach Applicant’s funds with the Bank of Ghana on the ground, among others, that the 1st Interested Party failed to file and serve on the Applicant, an entry of judgment pursuant to Order 47 rule 4(2) of the High Court Civil Procedure Rules, 2004 (C.I. 47).

On 2nd May, 2023, the High Court dismissed the application to stay proceedings and to set aside the garnishee order nisi serv