THE REPUBLIC v. JOHN KWEKU AACHT & AGNES AMA AACHT, EX PARTE: CAL BANK LIMITED

HONYENUGA, J.A.

This is an appeal by the respondents/appellants against the decision of the High Court, Sekondi dated the 6th day of February, 2012. The said Court convicted the respondents/appellants of contempt, ordered them to pay the outstanding sum owed to the applicant/respondent and later cautioned and discharged them.

The facts of this appeal are that the applicant/respondent whom I shall refer to as the respondent as in this judgment, are the Judgment Creditors while the 1st respondent/appellant and Jachfam Enterprises Ltd. are the Judgment Debtors before the High Court, Sekondi in Suit No. E2/22/99. The 2nd respondent/appellant is a Director of Jachfam Enterprises and the legal owner of House No. P.T.168, East Tanokrom, Takoradi. The respondents/appellants would be simply referred to as the appellants. The said High Court entered a consent judgment based on the terms of settlement filed by the parties on the 24th April 2008. The Court entered consent judgment in the sum of GH¢169,780.49 inclusive of interest and less the payment of GH¢34,116.90 leaving a total of GH¢135,663.78 against the appellants. The House No. P.T. 168, East Tanokrom, Takoradi which was the Collateral used in securing the payment of the loan was attached by a writ of Fifa filed by the respondent against the judgment debt of GH¢135,663.78. Subsequently, the High Court fixed the reserve price of the said house at GH¢310.000.00 for the purpose of auctioning it but upon an application by the 1st appellant, it was varied and fixed upwardly at GH¢420,000.00. All this while, the judgment debt which stood at GH¢237,067.99 remained unpaid. The appellants surreptitiously sold the property which had been attached to the Takoradi Polytechnic for GH¢390.000.00 contrary to the fixed reserve price. At the time of the said sale, the outstanding balance on the judgment debt stood at GH¢253,000.00. Although the appellants were paid the full amount for the sale, they paid only GH¢200,000.00 to the respondent leaving an outstanding balance of GH¢88,000.00 as at October 2011. The judgment debt as at the time stood at GH¢263,768.00. The respondent therefore filed an application for an order of contempt of Court against the appellants contending that the purported sale of the property to Takoradi Polytechnic was below the reserved price fixed by the Court as a blatant disregard and disobedience of the Court’s order. Further, they contended that the failure of the appellants to discharge the judgm