One of Ghana’s successful and celebrated entrepreneurs, Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, says he has had enough of the deliberate and malicious campaigns that have been waged against his person, his family and businesses the past four years.
Many of the negative campaigners and dirt throwers are people who have sought refuge under the tent of the current administration and people who for that reason feel that they are untouchable.
In what seems a first firm step to deal with the viciously orchestrated lies that continue to impugn on his integrity, Dr Nduom is seeking a GHC10 Million claim in damages, in a lawsuit against Hopeson Adorye, a member of the communication team of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in an Accra High Court.
Two others, one Kwadwo Amankwah Foxzy, also a communication team member of the NPP and Kencity Media, operators of Ash FM in Kumasi, are all included in the suit.
After weeks of playing hide and seek to try to evade summons, the bailiff finally caught up with Hopeson Adorye on Monday, July 5, 2021, and duly served him with the summons.
He is expected to file his defence within eight days, commencing on the day he was served with the writ of summons. The thrust of Dr Nduom’s is claim is that the three parties published intended and well calculated libellous statements against him (Dr Nduom).
In addition, Dr Nduom is demanding an apology and a retraction of the words used by the two and the medium used in publishing the falsehoods about him. He is also seeking the order of the court to restrain Defendants from publishing any such disparaging remarks against him in the future.
On June 5th, 2021, the two appeared on a programme where they concocted the obvious lies against the President of Groupe Nduom without any form of restrain from the medium—Ash FM in Kumasi, where the programme was being held.
In the said programme, Defendants averred that the “Plaintiff (Dr Nduom) after stealing, ran off to hide in the United States of America and used Asanteman Union of Chicago as a conduit to illegally transfer funds to the US and withdrew same to acquire assets for his personal benefit”.
These were contained in the writ filed by the legal team for Dr Nduom. According to Dr Nduom’s lawyers, such derogatory remarks do not only impugn on Dr Nduom’s persona, “but categorically assert that he is a “Thief’ and that after stealing deposits of clients ran off to hide in the US, a claim that imputes criminality to Dr Nduom”.
The lawyers further argue that the defendants’ assertion further “casts Plaintiff as a fugitive from Ghana”, an accusation Dr Nduom, vehemently refutes in his suit.
“The words complained of are utterly false and a figment of the Defendants malicious imagination and were calculated solely to disparage him and bring his name into disrepute”, counsel avers.
According to counsel, “while there is a case pending in the United States of America between one BirimLLC and the Plaintiff and some business entities in which Plaintiff is interested, nowhere has the allegation been made in the manner Defendants published”.
They again argue that the publications by Defendants were intended to set up their client for public ridicule.
“Plaintiff says further that the facts alleged against his business entities and his person are as of yet to be determined by the Court and Defendants publication are intended solely to set Plaintiff up for public ridicule”.
The lawyers contend that “Defendants publications are also intended to reduce his credibility before the Court in respect of the matters under consideration”, adding that “By the reason of the impugned publication”, their client’s “reputation and character has been severely damaged”.
Not only that the lawyers argue, “but the fact that he (Plaintiff) has suffered considerable embarrassment, emotional torment and distress”, adding that “The Plaintiff has been brought into public odium and contempt”. Counsel also claim their client “says that the damage caused to his reputation is also the result of his several years of business and political activities within Ghana and abroad”.
Dr Nduom is the founder of Groupe Nduom, a successful Ghanaian business and other business entities established over the past 30 years through hard work and sacrifice.
Dr Nduom is also one of the founders of the Progressive People’s Party (PPP) in Ghana. Aside from being an entrepreneur, Dr Nduom also served as a Minister of Economic Planning & Regional Corporation; Chairman of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC), Chairman, MIDA (Millennium Development Authority), Minister of Energy and Minister of Public Sector Reforms from 2005-2007.
Dr Nduom has also contested for the position of President of the Republic of Ghana; first on the ticket of the Convention Peoples Party (CPP) in 2008; and the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP) in 2012 and 2016.
It’s the express opinion of Dr Nduom that “the impugned publication by Defendants has received huge circulation on social media platforms, including worldwide platforms such as Youtube“, and alluded to the fact that “these publications have caused him to receive several calls from concerned friends, business and family members in the country and abroad”.
In that regard, he is “seeking aggravated damages that the Plaintiff shall contend; and to prove that the Defendants in publishing or causing to be published the statement complained of were actuated by malice”.
This is because, as Dr Nduom’s lawyers claim “they(Defendants) knew nowhere in the claim in the United States was the publication made by Defendants stated, yet they published same, contrary to the facts stated in the case filed in the U.S.A.”
SOURCE: Today Newspaper
