An Accra high court has dismissed a GHC25 million defamatory suit by the investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas against the MP for Assin Central in the Central Region, Kennedy Agyapong.
Anas took the MP to court in 2018 for allegedly defaming him.
In his application, Anas prayed to the court to award aggravated damages of GHC25 million to compensate for allegedly defamatory material published against him by Agyapong.
In a lengthy ruling delivered on Wednesday Justice Eric Baah held that the plaintiff, Anas Aremeyaw Anas, had failed to prove that Kennedy Agyapong defamed him by airing the documentary Who Watches the Watchman?.
The judge said that, on the contrary, the documentary exposed shady deals that Anas and his associates were involved in.
The court further held that Agyapong had provided sufficient evidence to prove that the plaintiff used the findings of his work to solicit money from individuals implicated in the evidence gathered by him.
The court said the evidence also proved that those people who were able to pay the sums of money demanded by Anas and his associates were exempted from videos that were shown to the public.
The court concluded that what Anas is engaged in is not investigative journalism, but rather investigative terrorism, and that Agyapong was justified to call him “a blackmailer, corrupt, an extortionist, and evil”.
“I find the claims by the plaintiff meritless and they are hereby dismissed,” Justice Baah ruled.
According to Anas, Agyapong, during a live programme in Twi on 29 May 2018 on Adom TV, stated categorically that he (Anas) was a blackmailer, corrupt, an extortionist and evil.
According to the statement of claim filed by lawyers for Anas, the defendant (Agyapong) similarly published defamatory words on 31 May 2018 on Oman FM, a private radio station owned by Agyapong.
The statement of claim also said that the defendant published further defamatory materials against the plaintiff on other platforms, to the extent of releasing photographs purporting to be portraits of the investigative journalist in his effort to blow the latter’s cover.
Anas declared in his statement of claim that his reputation, especially as a lawyer and globally acclaimed investigative journalist, had been egregiously damaged.
“Furthermore, Anas indicates that, following the publication, he was inundated with numerous calls from business associates, journalists around the world, social relations, friends, outright strangers, and he has had to answer very mortifying questions,” the statement of claim said.
According to Anas, Agyapong published the words complained of knowing them to be false and reckless.
Lawyers for Kennedy Agyapong asked the court after the ruling to award costs of GHC1 million against the plaintiff.
When he got to his feet, counsel for Anas offered to pay GHC20,000 by way of costs.
Justice Eric Baah declared that because the award of cost in such civil cases is at the discretion of the court, he will award costs of GHC50,000 against Anas.