"Susu" company seeks injunction against Bank of Ghana

Tanker driver on 10 million cedis stealing charges.

Accra (Greater Accra) 13 July '99

Hearing started on Monday at a High Court in Accra of a case in which Brotherly Link, a "Susu" company, and its four directors are seeking an order to restrain the Bank of Ghana (BOG) from interfering with its operations.

The company on June 10 filed a writ at the court seeking an order of perpetual injunction to restrain BOG from stopping it from doing its "legitimate and lawful operations".

It further claims damages from the defendants for causing a "libellous and defamatory" publication on its operations in the "Daily Graphic" issue of June one, this year.

Other defendants cited in the writ are Dr D.O. Andah, Director of non-banking institutions of BOG, Graphic Corporation and its acting editor, Mr Yaw Boadu Ayeboafo, and the Golden Neo Life Diamite International, a foreign-based company dealing in Susu.

Arguing the matter, attorney for the plaintiffs, Mr Thomas Ward-Brew said the company has legally registered with the Registrar-General's Department to do business.

He submitted that the type of susu operated by his clients is called MEGA-SUSU in which a group of "contributors" pool resources for a member of the scheme who benefits from a fixed amount at a given point in time.

Counsel contended that the law under which his clients are operating could not be said to be contrary to any financial law for BOG to interfere or stop their operations.

Mr Ward-Brew submitted that notwithstanding their legal operations, BOG granted an interview to Graphic which published "defamatory" material that operations of the plaintiffs were illegal.

He, therefore, urged the court to restrain the defendants from asking the plaintiffs to stop operations.

Mr Agoloso Mensah, counsel for BOG, said if the plaintiffs continued with their operations, they would be arrested because the MEGA-SUSU is illegal.

He said the scheme involves the collection of money from the public like any financial institution but the plaintiffs have not registered with BOG and neither has the Central Bank issued the company with licence to perform that business.

Mr Mensah said BOG is the central banking institution charged under the law to regulate financial activities of organisations.

He, therefore, urged the court not to grant the reliefs sought and rather dismiss the writ.

Mr J.K. Agyemang, attorney for the Graphic, said his clients could not be held for making a libellous or defamatory publication about the plaintiffs because the paper acted in the interest of the public.

He quoted legal authorities to buttress his point and added that in trite law a newspaper, in those circumstances, could not be held for publishing defamatory article.

The other plaintiffs are Mr Clint Dickoh, Mr Seth Anim Amanor, Mr Stephen Buckman Okyere and Mr Wisdom Ebow Panford.

Hearing continues on Tuesday, July 13.

GRi../

Tema (Greater Accra) 13 July '99

The Tema Community Tribunal on Monday remanded John Tawiah Kolley, a tanker driver, in custody on charges of stealing 13,500 litres of petrol valued at 10 million cedis, from Accra Plains Goil Depot.

He pleaded not guilty on two counts of stealing and will re-appear on July 26.

The tribunal chaired by Captain Philip Agbeyomey (rtd) heard that on April 24, 1998, at about 23:00 hours Policemen on duty at the Kpone Barrier, on a tip off, went to the Accra Plains depot where they found two tankers with registration numbers GR 8951 J and GT 8366 E loading fuel products from the main petrol line of the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR).

The Police discovered on their arrival that the driver in charge of GT 8366 E had filled his tanker to full capacity of 13,500 litres of petrol, valued at 10 million cedis, and managed to escape.

However, the driver of GR 8915 J was arrested, put before the tribunal and was jailed last year.

On July seven, a foreman of TOR, later revealed the identity of the accused to the Tema Regional Crime Officer and he was arrested.

During interrogations, Kolley told the Police that, "I am a fisherman.

I have never been a driver before, and I don't know the owner of the tanker".

The Police are yet to trace the owner of the tanker.

The prosecutor said, during initial investigations in April last year, the owner of the tanker in a cautioned statement to the Police, mentioned the name of his driver as John Tawiah Kolley.

GRi../