Trigmatic and Amakye Dede
Amakye Dede has sued Enock Nana Yaw Oduro Agyei, known popularly in the music scene as Trigmatic, for defamation.
In his statement of claim, Amakye Dede whose musical career spans over four decades, stated that on October 15 this year, his attention was drawn to a publication on a website, www.ghgossip.com which reads, “Amakye Dede does not write his own songs” attributed to Trigmatic.
“In their natural and ordinary meaning, the words published by the defendant (Trigmatic) referred to and were understood to refer to the plaintiff (Amakye Dede) and they meant and they were understood to mean (a) that the plaintiff is incapable of writing his own songs. (b) That plaintiff’s songs are written by someone else for him to sing or produce. (c) That plaintiff’s stature and legendary status must be taken with a pinch of salt. (d) That the height, popularity and the fame the plaintiff has achieved in the music circles over the years are not genuine and that the esteem and reverence people hold and have for him as well as the nation on the plaintiff as an ace and top-class musician should be reconsidered,” the statement said.
It said immediately the defendant published his words on him (plaintiff) on the website aforesaid, people from all walks of life started to call the plaintiff and sarcastically wanted to know if the he does not write his own songs as claimed by the defendant.
According to the statement, the plaintiff became disturbed from the sarcastic phone calls he received and is still disturbed.
It continued that apart from ill-will, ill-motive, pull-him-down play and a grand scheme to rubbish his achievements, nothing else could have motivated the defendant to publish those words about plaintiff and that defendant intended to defame the plaintiff on the online platform https/www.ghgossip.com.
The statement claimed that the defendant later confirmed his defamatory publication on Zylofon FM.
It further stated that the online platform where those words were published by the defendant about the plaintiff speaks for itself, being gossip consumption website where stories, gossip and illicit agenda which travel faster than the sun rays are spread.
It said by the defendant’s publication, his reputation has now become charged and he has been ridiculed, adding that the defendant’s words used in his publication have lowered the image of the plaintiff, reverence and esteem before the right-thinking members of the society both locally and internationally.
The statement, however, declared that per the defendant’s defamatory publication on the plaintiff, he is likely to have diminished show contracts and low attendance to his shows.
The statement of claim is seeking the following: (a) A declaration that the defendant’s words published of plaintiff are defamatory. (b) General damages for libel contained in the defendant’s publication indorsed by way of attachment and particularized paragraph 11.
(c) Aggravated damages arising from libel published by the defendant of the plaintiff to the sum of GH¢1, 000, 000 against the defendant.
(d) Cost, including lawyer’s fees. (e) Any further relief or orders as the court may deem meet.
By George Clifford Owusu