Court trashes Agyapong suit against Anas

An Accra High Court has dismissed an application by Assin Central MP, Kennedy Agyapong, seeking to dismiss the GHS25 million defamation suit filed against him by investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas.

Mr Agyapong said in his writ that Anas’ hood concealed his identity and, therefore, breached his [Kennedy Agyapong’s] constitutional rights under Article 33 of the 1992 Constitution. Mr Agyapong wanted to see the face of the man suing him for defamation but the court quashed that point with the argument that no relevant legal points were raised to substantiate that claim.

The court, however, directed Anas to furnish Mr Agyapong with a more detailed address in 10 days as the journalist stated that he lives at North Labone Crescent while Mr Kweku Baako, his mentor, who also lives there, described it as North Labone Estates in a writ he filed in the Supreme Court.

The court further directed Mr Agyapong to file his statement of defence within 14 days.

Mr Agyapong had filed an application seeking to dismiss Anas’ lawsuit against him on the bases that the writ was incompetent, that it did not disclose Anas’ address, and that it breached his constitutional right as a person.

Anas sued Mr Agyapong for defaming him and is demanding GHS25 million in damages.

The suit came after Mr Agyapong launched a scathing attack on Anas’s modus operandi in his journalism practice shortly after the journalist disclosed his intention to release a two-year investigative piece which unearthed massive rot in Ghana football.

According to Mr Agyapong, Anas does not practise investigative journalism but sets people up to destroy their hard-won reputation.

He noted that if Anas were to have been using the same entrapment tactics in some other part of the world, he would have been killed by now.

The lawmaker described Anas as “corrupt, evil, blackmailer, and wicked”, and promised to “strip him naked” with evidence.

Source: Ghana/ClassFMonline.com