The immediate past Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Freddie Worsemao Blay, has also initiated a defamation suit against Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, regarding some unsubstantiated comments he made.
Attached to the suit is broadcast journalist Johnnie Hughes and Media General, owners of TV3, 3FM and others for the journalist’s similar claims on air.
The plaintiff, who is the Board Chairman of Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC), is seeking a total of GH¢20 million from the three defendants for the damages done to his reputation as a result of the comments made on social media, 3FM and its YouTube channel.
This is the second defamation suit initiated against the MP following his allegations against the Blay family in relation to ownership of the beachfront of the Labadi Beach Hotel.
The Chief Executive Officer of DAILY GUIDE newspaper, Kwame Blay, on June 27, 2024, issued a writ of defamation against the MP for some unsubstantiated comments, demanding GH¢20 million as special damages.
Unsubstantiated Allegations
Mr. Ablakwa on June 1, 2024, on his Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) posted, “…The bombshell court documents confirm that the son of the former National Chairman of the NPP, Mr. Kwaw Worsemao Blay now claims to be the new owner of the beachfront which had always belonged to Labadi Beach Hotel. Labadi Beach Hotel has thus become the only beachfront hotel in the world which does not have exclusive control over its entire beachfront.”
He continued that, “Sadly, because of the powerful politically exposed persons involved in this shady encroachment, the Board and management of Labadi Beach Hotel appear helpless. Ghanaians may never have known of this shocking hostile 2022 takeover by the then NPP Chairman, Mr. Freddie Worsemao Blay’s son, if Mr. Kwaw Worsemao Blay’s business partner, Mr. Loic Devos Junior had not initiated action…”
Then on June 18, 2024, the MP organised a demonstration dubbed “Hands Off Our Hotels”, and placards during the demonstration included “Blay and Sons Return Our Beach”.
He then petitioned the President and published copies on his social media handles, posting, “The Blay Family should be instructed by President Akufo-Addo to stop the illegal encroachment, stop issuing threats, and get off Labadi Beach Hotel’s beachfront. It is a national embarrassment that the Labadi Beach Hotel has become the only beach hotel in the world without ownership and control of its beachfront…”
Johnnie Hughes, on his show dubbed ‘Johnnie’s Bite’ on 3FM 92.7 and aired on its radio channel and YouTube channel, made similar claims against Mr. Blay.
“…And guess who is laying claim to the beachfront of Labadi Beach Hotel, the son of Freddie Blay, former Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, former MP on the ticket of the CPP, former Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of the Republic of Ghana, astute lawyer, former board chair or is it still board chair of GNPC, Chairman Freddie Blay, his son is laying claim to the frontage, the beachfront at Labadi Beach Hotel, the Labadi Beach Hotel that we have all known…why won’t the hotel be now up for sale.”
Statement of Claim
Mr. Blay argues that these false publications concerning the plaintiff were made available to general public and were disseminated all over the world by the followers of the defendant, as well as other social media users using a variety of media.
According to him the MP hoping to benefit from the popularity and good will of the plaintiff has gone on to make subsequent utterances on this issue, always making sure to name drop the plaintiff in one way or the other, due to the publicity he is getting from this, which he is clearly enjoying.
He states that the MP has made several unfounded allegations and uttered palpable falsehoods against his person.
The suit avers that the words complained about in their natural and ordinary meaning as well as in their secondary meaning meant, and were understood to mean that the plaintiff has used and leveraged on his political influence, to help his sons, Kwaw and Kwame Blay, to illegally and unlawfully appropriate the beachfront of the Labadi Beach Hotel; that by virtue of his then position as the National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, assisted his sons in a shady deal, which saw the encroachment of property belonging to the Labadi Beach Hotel.
The suit avers that the words also meant that but for the plaintiff’s political standing, the Labadi Beach Hotel’s board and management may not have been helpless, and would have taken steps to protect their interest in the beachfront.
It further states that the words meant the “Plaintiff is an unscrupulous person, who sought to, and indeed succeeded in using his political office, which is intended for public service, for the benefit of himself and his children.”
It adds that the words complained about meant “The Plaintiff, together with his sons, in order to appropriate the beachfront of the Labadi Beach Hotel, issue threats and used the Plaintiff’s political standing and exposure, to bulldoze their way through to succeed with their illegal, illicit, unlawful, and unethical activities.”
Regarding the claims made by Johnnie Hughes, the suit avers that the words complained of meant the plaintiff’s son is laying claim to ownership of the beachfront of the Labadi Beach Hotel and he is only able to make such a claim by virtue of his relationship with the plaintiff.
The suit avers that Johnnie Hughes’ utterances were made on radio and television media belonging to Media General, who are responsible in their own regard for the publication and subsequent republication of the defamatory statements.
Mr. Blay argues that Media General should have exercised more care and due diligence before allowing such a statement to be made on its platform and publishing same, due to its reach in terms of viewership.
Particulars of Defamation/Malice
The suit avers that the statements were made by the MP and journalist knowing they were false, or reckless as to their truth, and they were calculated to and did reduce the estimation of the plaintiff in the minds of right-thinking persons.
The suit also avers that the defendants knew very well that at the time they were making or publishing the defamatory statements, the plaintiff was in no way connected to any agreement or dispute over ownership of the Labadi Beach Hotel beachfront.
It adds that Mr. Ablakwa knew very well that by virtue of his position as a Member of Parliament and the present political climate leading up to the general elections, this would lend immense credibility to his believability, attach credibility to his publication and spur on several political actors who would simply latch onto them without due regard for the truth, just for political purposes.
Mr. Blay states that “the words on their own are defamatory in nature and lowers the image of the Plaintiff in the sight of the right-thinking members of society,” and that “his reputation has been severely impacted by the Defendants’ false and malicious publications.”
Reliefs
He is, therefore, seeking a declaration that the words contained in the defendants’ publications in respect of the plaintiff are defamatory.
He is asking for special damages of GH¢10 million against Mr. Ablakwa and another GH¢10 million against Johnnie Hughes and Media General for the defamatory words.
Again, he is seeking general, aggravated and exemplary damages arising from defamatory words as well as costs, inclusive of counsel’s fees against the defendants.
Mr. Blay is also seeking a “perpetual injunction restraining Defendants either by themselves, or their agents, associates, privies and assigns or any other person or entity from further publishing or causing to be published, printing or causing to be printed, distributed or otherwise circulated the said defamatory words and or any other similar words.”
Additionally, he is seeking an “order directed at the Defendants to retract and render an unqualified apology to the Plaintiff, through the same medium through which they were published.”
BY Gibril Abdul Razak