Six Freemasons file writ against Presbyterian Church

Accra (Greater Accra) 8 Dec ’99

Six members of the Royal Arch Chapter of Freemasonry (Irish Constitution) have filed a writ at an Accra High Court to get the Presbyterian Church of Ghana to withdraw from circulation a report concerning the Lodge.

The plaintiffs are also seeking the court's order to restrain the "Christian Messenger" and its printers, two of the eight defendants mentioned in the writ, from publishing the report of a committee appointed by the Synod Committee to prepare a study material on lodges.

The plaintiffs are Mr Kwame Johnson, Mr George Nyarku Dennis, Mr John Lantei Lawson, Mr Kweku Egyiri Orleans-Lindsay, Mr Joseph Akplen Lartey and Mr Charles Abossey Abrahams.

The defendants are Registered Trustees of the Church, the Rev. Dr G. A. Dadzaa, Volta Presbytery, Rev. Dr. Isaac Fokuo, Western Presbytery and Dr Seth Twum, legal adviser to the church.

Other defendants mentioned in the writ are Mr Aboagye Mensah, a lawyer and Mrs Akua Debrah, all of the church, Mr. G. B. K. Owusu, Editor of the Christian Messenger and the Presbyterian Book Depot.

In their statement of claim, the plaintiffs averred that in 1983, the Church decided that paid agents and elders of the church shall not be members of lodges and secret societies and those who are already members should consider withdrawing their membership from them.

In 1994, a member of the Friendly Society of the Grand United Order of Odd Fellows had judgement in a case in which he sought a High Court's order to quash the decision of the Presbyterian Church synod.

The Church filed a notice of appeal against the court's verdict but without the determination of the appeal, "the Synod in a statement said all members of the Church are banned from joining the Lodges and other secret societies".

The plaintiffs said a Lodge member again filed an application for an order of certiorari to quash the decision of the Church and this was upheld by an Accra High Court on July 30, this year.

"Thereafter, the defendants caused to be published a document written by five of the defendants which stated inter alia that, " a candidate for a Royal Arch Chapter swears to keep all the secrets of a companion of his degree, murder and treason not excepted".

The plaintiffs stated that they deny that portion of the report and aver that the ends of justice will be served if the defendants are restrained from disseminating false and malicious information about the lodges.

GRi../