Seth J. Bokpe's Ghana Newsreel

The Supreme Court yesterday overruled a preliminary objection raised by Mr Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey that it had no mandate to hear a case brought before it by Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa and Dr Omane Boamah in respect of his right to purchase a government bungalow. The nine-member court, in a unanimous decision, argued that although the case passed for a land case, which falls within the domain of the High Court, the plaintiffs were not laying claim to the property in question but rather seeking an interpretation of several provisions of the Constitution regarding the ownership of state property, including Articles 20 (5) and 20 (6) of the 1992 Constitution. Presided over by Mr Justice William Atuguba, the court agreed that it had jurisdiction by law and precedents to hear the case which bordered both on constitutionality and public interest. Other members of the court were Ms Justice Sophia Akuffo, Mr Justice S. A. Brobbey, Mrs Justice Sophia Adinyira, Mrs Justice Rose Ow...