The Editor-in-Chief of the New Crusading Guide newspaper, Abdul Malik Kweku Baako Jnr has been successful in the defamation suit he filed against outspoken Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Mr Kennedy Agyapong, in October 2018.
Kweku Baako in his suit complained that Mr. Agyapong in July 2018 made some defamatory comments against him on some radio stations including his own media platforms Net2 TV and Oman FM.
Mr. Baako said the MP accused him of being corrupt, being a hypocrite, dishonest among others.
“Look, I have dared Kweku Baako. He is a very corrupt guy. Where is his paper? Kweku Baako is very corrupt; Kweku Baako is very corrupt in his paper. Kweku Baako is not a clean man that President would tolerate in his office anymore…. I said I have concluded that Kweku Baako is not clean…He’s a hypocrite….. Kweku Baako is not an honest man at all………I said he’s not a saint. Kweku Baako is not a saint. He’s evil…… Very evil man…He’s a very evil man,” Mr. Agyapong said these, according to Kweku Baako’s writ.
Kennedy Agyapong also accused Mr. Baako and investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas of engaging in galamsey using a company called C & G Aleska Company Ltd.
The said allegations were after Anas and his Tigereye PI team aired the galamsey scandal investigative piece.
The veteran journalist who was unhappy with the allegations made by the Assing Central MP demanded GHS25 million in general damages from Kennedy Agyapong.
Kweku Baako also wanted the court to order Kennedy Agyapong to retract such utterances and render an unqualified apology to him.
“An order of the Court directed at the Defendant to publish on three consecutive occasions, on the same platform that he published the defamatory words, an unqualified retraction and an apology, with the same prominence as given to the issuance of the defamatory words.”
Ruling
The Accra High Court hearing the case, today, Friday, June 26, 2020, gave Mr. Agyapong 30 days to retract and apologise to Kweku Baako three times on the platforms he used to defame the veteran journalist on.
Instead of the GHS25 million demanded by Kweku Baako, the court awarded GHS100,000 damages instead and a cost of GHS30,000.
Other defamation suits against Kennedy
There are a number of defamation suits against Kennedy Agyapong pending in various courts in the country. Some of them are:
Anas vs Kennedy Agyapong: In this case, Kennedy Agyapong is said to have alleged that Anas Aremeyaw Anas killed the former Abuakwa North Member of Parliament, JB Danquah-Adu. The Assin Central MP is also said to have accused Anas as a fraudster and also engaging in small scale illegal mining also known as galamsey.
C & G Aleska Company Ltd vs Kennedy Agyapong: In this case, the vociferous lawmaker alleged that C & K Alaska engages in galamsey with Kweku Baako and Anas Aremeyaw Anas.
Ellen Kwakukume vs Kennedy Agyapong: Mr. Agyapong in this case too reportedly alleged that the retired State Attorney took bribes from Anas to thwart justice.
Ivy vs Kennedy Agyapong: The lawmaker also facing defamation charges after he alleged that Ivy killed her own husband, J.B. Danquah.
