The High Court has struck out the defamation suit filed by Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin against the CEO of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), Sammy Gyamfi. The court ruled that the Minority Leader’s writ of summons failed to meet the mandatory procedural requirements for libel cases under the High Court Civil Procedure Rules.
The case stemmed from a public row over an alleged US$1.7 billion loss under the Bank of Ghana’s Domestic Gold Purchase Programme in 2025. Afenyo-Markin had publicly questioned the reported losses, prompting a rebuttal from Gyamfi, who in turn accused the Minority Leader of attempted extortion. Afenyo-Markin subsequently sued for defamation.
Lawyers for Gyamfi entered a conditional appearance and challenged the validity of the writ, arguing it breached Order 57 Rule 2 of C.I. 47. That rule requires that a writ for libel must be endorsed with sufficient particulars of the alleged defamatory publication to properly identify it. The court agreed, stressing that the requirement is not a mere technicality but a specific condition for invoking its jurisdictioIn distinguishing previous Supreme Court precedents such as Owusu Domena v Amoh, where defects were cured by particulars in the statement of claim, the judge noted that in this case the defendant promptly objected. Relying also on the Supreme Court decision in the Alex Onuma v Newmont consolidated cases which emphasised strict compliance with Order 57, the court set aside the writ and statement of claim filed on August 24, 2026. No order was made as to costs.
