Nana Oye Bampoe Addo, a former Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, has sued her ex-husband Mr Tony Lithur for libel in their divorce petition filed on May 2, 2018.
The two were customarily married on April 14, 1991, and the marriage was converted into ordinance marriage by the parties in January 1998 and on May 2, 2018, Mr Lithur (defendant) filed a petition for divorce against Nana Oye (plaintiff), which was part heard and yet to be concluded.
Nana Oye said in the divorce petition the defendant made false averments and cause the defamatory words to be published.
She is, therefore, demanding general damages of US$500,000.00 and exemplary damages of US$1 million.
She said in the defendant’s (petitioner’s) reply dated July 9, 2018, the defendant again made further false averments and caused to be published, further defamatory words about her.
Nana Oye said these false statements about her, maliciously and knowingly published by the defendant in his divorce petition and reply, which were severally published, printed, and broadcast by several tens of broadcast media, across the world wide web, print and broadcast media, social media and by bloggers.
According to the plaintiff, the words and statements contained in the petition referred her to as an adulterer with loose morals, a cruel and violent person, a lazy and irresponsible mother, and a person, who though holding herself out as a human rights lawyer was violating the human rights of her household, relatives and family and was engaged in acts in direct contradiction of her profession.
She contended that the true meaning of stating that the plaintiff informed him of her intention of purchasing an investment property in South Africa soon after leaving office in the sum of US$350,000 to US$500,000.00 was inferred that she was not only a corrupt person but also abused her office to steal public funds to enable her to finance the purchase of the alleged property.
The plaintiff said due to the false averments and publications of the acquisition of investment property in South Africa by the defendant, the OSP instituted investigations into the corruption and corruption-related offences, money laundering and illegal acquisition of property in South Africa against her.
She said the OSP investigated her and subsequently admitted her to bail and a pending case was published against her by the OSP, which made her engage the legal services to defend herself.
She had denied committing any of the acts alleged by the defendant and added that the defendant published the defamatory words knowing very well the same as untrue but with the sole intention of causing considerable damage to and to disparage her reputation.
The former Minister said because of false statements and publications by the defendant, she had been seriously injured in her reputation and had been shunned and brought to public ridicule, hatred, scandal, odium, and contempt.
She said since the publication, she had been inundated with phone calls, insults, and humiliation and has had to avoid certain public appearances and had to resign from lecturing at a particular tertiary institution.
“Answering embarrassing questions and suffer humiliating treatments from different people including strangers, associates, friends, family members, foreigners, some members of the international community, international acquaintances, and colleague professionals,” she added.
Nana Oye is seeking some relief; including a perpetual injunction restraining the defendant jointly and severally
“either by himself and or his assign(s) from further making any averments or publishing or causing to be published, the said defamatory words or similar words.”
She also wants the defendant to retract and an apology to be published on social media including on the defendant’s Facebook wall, the website of Lithurbrew & Company, the Twitter (now X) and Instagram handles of the defendant, and all his social media handles and on the website of the Ghanaweb, together with the website of Joy FM, Peace FM and Citi FM.
GNA
CA/
14 May 2024
