Barely four days after The Herald, published an interview granted by a royal of the Akyem Abuakwa Stool, the 35th occupant of the Ofori Panin Stool, Osagyefo Amoatia Ofori Panin II, has rushed to court to gag the paper from further publications; a clear case of someone looking for scapegoats.
Interestingly, the first defendant in the case is Okyehene�s cousin, who granted the exclusive interview to this paper, Odehye Nana Kwame Agyei Boateng. This man was once banished by the Okyenhene in 2012 for speaking on the illegal mining in the area and claiming the chief (Okyehene) was involved in the act.
President John Dramani Mahama, Journalist and Columnist Cameron Doudu, Odehye Boateng and even the Member of Parliament (MP) of the Abuakwa South, Samuel Atta Akyea, have all bitterly lamented about the destructive situation which has led to a massive pollution of water bodies, such as Birem River, Supon and Densu to the distress of the people in the area.
Indeed, several Eastern Regional Ministers and the National Security Secretariat, have many times stormed Abuakwa and its environs with police and military officers, seeking to clear the illegal miners and end their environmentally destructive activity, but all to no avail.
The writ was filed on behalf of the 63-year-old occupant of the Ofori Panin stool, who is known in private life as Odehye Nana Kwame Amoatia Ofori Atta by the K-RCHY & Company inside the Atteffah House, Club 10, Kanda -Accra.
The Okyehene�s writ, which has Prime Mark Company Limited, publishers of The Herald as the second defendant, Larry-Alans Dogbey as the third defendant and the fourth defendant Kofi Nyame; the writer of the story, was served yesterday by a lady from the Fast Track High Court, who gave her name as Victoria.
He said, the claims of Odehye Boateng, which was published by The Herald, were all false to the knowledge and defamatory of his hard earned reputation as an avowed environmentalist and an exemplary King of Akyem Abuakwa.
It said that the statements published by the defendants, in its natural and ordinary meaning, were understood to mean that: the plaintiff was a criminal who should be put away from society in general as his stock in trade was environmental degradation.
It continued that the publication meant that the Okyehene was a complete embodiment of deception and leads a double life and also he was unworthy of all the environmental protection offices and positions he had occupied in Ghana and throughout the world.
The fifteen points claim continued that the said false allegations published by defendants and given a wide circulation has caused severe damage to his enviable reputation and shall contend that; the said publication had lowered plaintiff�s reputation in the estimation of right thinking members of the society worldwide.
It said also that the publication had exposed Okyehene to public odium, ridicule and contempt in the eyes of right thinking members of society worldwide, as the defendants maliciously published the defamatory statements in order to achieve that result.
It contended that the defendants published the defamatory statements purely and purposely to expose plaintiff to hatred, ridicule and contempt.
He, therefore, asked the court to jointly and severally award him general damage inclusive of exemplary damages for libelous statements made in reference to him as May 5, 2014 edition of �The Herald�.
A perpetual injunction restraining defendants by themselves, agents and kinsmen howsoever from further publication or causing to be published the said words or similar words defamatory of the plaintiff as well as pay costs including solicitor�s fees.
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