A Sekondi High Court, presided over by Justice Dr. Richmond Osei Hwere, has quashed the ruling of a Tarkwa based Circuit Court, which refused to hear a motion on notice, filed to set aside a writ of possession and the entire execution of the enforcement of an award in favor of one Nana Awuah Koanpong VII, an interested party.
On August 27, 2020 the applicants in the certiorari application filed a motion on notice to set aside a writ of possession and the entire execution of the enforcement of an award in favor of one Nana Awuah Koanpong VII, an interested party in the suit, but the Circuit Court declined to give them hearing.
The Circuit court had argued that, there is a contempt application regarding the same issue, pending before another Sekondi High Court and that, it cannot hear the applicants.
This was after Counsel for the interested party had drawn the Circuit Court Judge’s attention to the contempt application.
But the applicants – OhyeaworaBiahNyowahPanyin IV, Chief of DompimPepessa, Nana Sebel, Alexander Asare, Daniel Hollo, Hans Kwofie, Lydia Mensah and Auguatine Hallow- who were dissatisfied with the ruling of the circuit court filed a motion in the form of certiorari at the Sekondi High Court, praying it to quash the ruling of the lower court.
In an affidavit accompanying the motion, applicants averred that the interested Party and his counsel were served with their motion as filed at the Court Registry, but they refused to file any affidavit in opposition.
Again, the interested party and his lawyer were present at the Circuit Court on September 9, 2020 when the Court refused them (applicants) the right to have their motion heard. The applicants averred that the Circuit Court, Tarkwa, declining to hear their motion and same refusing applicants the right to have their motion heard violated their right to a fair hearing.
The applicants further contended that the Circuit Court Judge acted unlawfully when he declined to hear their motion on notice to set aside a writ of possession and the entire execution of the enforcement of an arbitration award.
That apart, the circuit Court breached the time tested rule of law of natural justice and access to justice when it refused counsel for the applicants the right to move the aforesaid application.
Sekondi High court verdict
Justice Dr. Richmond Osei Hwere, in his judgement that quashed the ruling of the Circuit court said the rule of natural justice encompasses two things- the rule to hear the other side and rule against bias.
He said no matter how frivolous a claim is, a court existed to hear a party’s grievance.
For this reason, it was for a court to uphold, strike out or dismiss a claim after hearing a party and his adversary or after giving them opportunity to be heard.
Justice Dr. Osei Hwere pointed out in his ruling that attempt by Interested Party Counsel to rationalize the decision of the Circuit Court was with utmost respect not borne out of the record and the rule of law.
“If the court was minded to adjourn the matter due to the pending of the contempt application, it should have said so. Declining to hear a matter is not the same as adjourning a matter. The former simply means refusal to give a party audience in court to ventilate his complaints,” the court said.
In his considered view, the position taken by the Circuit Court constituted a denial of access to justice and a fundamental breach of the rules of natural justice.For this reason, he pointed out that “there can be no fair hearing if a party is not given hearing at all. I am of the considered opinion that the applicant has established a case for the grant of certiorari to quash the said decision of the Circuit court, Tarkwa dated 9th September, 2020. The decision is accordingly quashed,” the high court judge said.
