Court orders GIS to set aside interdiction of two officers
Two interdicted officials of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) yesterday walked out of the Accra High Court in a jubilant mood as the court set aside their interdiction.
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The court described their interdiction, based on accusation of approving permits for some Chinese citizens who came into the country to engage in illegal mining, as a “sham and a charade.”
The court ordered the immediate reinstatement of the then acting Deputy Director in charge of Legal of GIS, Mr Kwame Asuah Takyi, but declined to reinstate the then Deputy Director of Finance and Administration, Ms Veronica Addy, who had retired from the service but was on a two-year post-retirement contract when they were interdicted.
A third official, the Assistant Director for Processing, Mr Joseph Gardiner, was not part of the action.
Court orders
The court, however, ordered that the plaintiffs be paid their entitlement.
The three officials were interdicted on October 25, 2013 for allegedly issuing permits to some Chinese nationals without due regard to laid down procedure.
However, following their interdiction, the GIS failed to constitute a committee to undertake a service enquiry on them.
Delivering judgement, Mr Justice Henry Kwofie, an appeal court judge, sitting as an additional high court judge, described the whole investigation process leading to the interdiction of the two plaintiffs a “sham and a charade” and without any justifiable basis.
The court averred that the Accra High Court had earlier by an Order of Prohibition restrained the service from instituting a disciplinary hearing against the two plaintiffs.
“That order of the High Court still persists,” Justice Kwofie said during his ruling.
While the court declined to award general damages against the service, it ordered that Mr Takyi be reinstated “without loss of seniority, rights, entitlement, allowances from the period of interdiction till date.”
The court, however, noted that since Ms Addy had left the service after the expiration of her two-year post-retirement contract, the court had no power to order her reinstatement as a member of staff of GIS.
While acknowledging that the plaintiffs were indemnified by their interdiction which was widely published in newspapers and broadcast on radio, the court declined to give relief of general damages to Mr Takyi.
The court said “having ordered the reinstatement of the plaintiff and the payment of all his entitlements and privileges, this court should not go any further in respect of the payment of damages and general damages.”
Emotions
While the court was delivering its judgement, Mr Takyi who sat in front wore a steel face, showing no emotions, but tapped his feet on the floor.
Some of his relatives and friends could not hold back their tears.
With the sanctity of the courtroom restraining their jubilation momentarily, some of his relatives burst into spontaneous jubilation outside the courtroom, rolling on the floor.
They waved white handkerchiefs and hugged their kinsman.
Outside the courtroom, a visibly happy Mr Takyi told the Daily Graphic that the outcome of the legal battle was normal for him, since he knew that he had not done anything wrong.
Background
In his statement of claim, Mr Takyi averred that he joined the GIS on October 1, 1999 as assistant Superintendent and rose through the senior level ranks by dint of hard work to become an Assistant Director of Immigration.
He said he acted in the position of Deputy Director of Immigration, Legal, for 11 years in contravention of Public Service Regulations and without any extra remuneration or compensation except being paid an acting allowance of GH¢190 a month.
It was the case of Mr Takyi that his interdiction and the actions of the GIS, with regard to his interdiction, were tantamount to constructive dismissal from the GIS and contravened Article 191 of the 1992 Constitution which had caused him great hardship and embarrassment.
He, therefore, sought a declaration that his interdiction and the events that followed amounted to a constructive dismissal and were, therefore, wrong, null and void and of no legal effect because it was inconsistent and contravened the 1992 Constitution.
But the GIS, in a statement of defence, filed by the Chief State Attorney, Mrs Helen A.A. Ziwu, denied all the claims of Mr Takyi and said that he was not entitled to any reliefs being sought by him in his statement of claim.
