The Accra High Court has ruled in favour of former National Security Minister Albert Kan Dapaah, awarding him GHC5 million in general damages against Oliver Barker-Vormawor for defamation.
Additionally, the court has ordered Oliver Barker-Vormawor to pay a cost of GH₵100,000 to Albert Kan Dapaah.
In delivering the judgment, Justice (Rev.) Joseph Owusu Adu-Agyeman stated that all the reliefs claimed by the plaintiff, Albert Kan Dapaah, have been granted, except for the compensation claim of GHC10 million, which has been reduced to GHC5 million.
Prior to the judgment, the lawyers for Oliver Barker-Vormawor, led by Baffour Gyau Bonsu Ashia, had moved an application to relist their Statement of Defence and Witness Statement, which had earlier been struck out, but the court dismissed the application as being inconsistent with the rules.
Meanwhile, Oliver Barker-Vormawor intends to challenge the High Court’s ruling that requires him to pay GHC5.1 million to former National Security Minister Albert Kan Dapaah, citing procedural unfairness in the judgment’s inception.
In a Facebook post reacting to the March 2 ruling, he faulted the court for procedural irregularities in the handling of his case.
According to him, his legal team was not allowed to complete cross-examination of Kan Dapaah and that his witness statement was filed but refused consideration by the court before judgment was delivered.
“Of course we will seek to set it aside. But he can take his victory lap,” Barker-Vormawor wrote.
Former National Security Minister Kan Dapaah filed a GHC10 million defamation suit against FixTheCountry Movement convener Barker-Vormawor over allegations that Kan Dapaah offered him money to stop his activism, which Barker-Vormawor later refuted, prompting Kan Dapaah to seek damages, an apology, and a retraction.
