Injunction Against Ga Manye Funeral Quashed
A Justice of the Accra High Court, Justice Patrick Baayeh has set aside an injunction order granted against the funeral of the late Ga Manye, Naa Dedei Omaedru III.
This was after a review by the sitting judge on Thursday, October 26, 2023.
According to a new ruling delivered on the case, the injunction order was issued erroneously.
“Upon reading the affidavit filed by the applicants and deposed to by the 1st defendant/applicant and upon hearing Ayikoi Otoo, counsel for the defendant/applicants I am of the view that the order of Interim injunction granted on 25th October 2023 was made in error. The applicants failed to give the court the true state of affairs.
“In fairness to the parties therefore the order of interim injunction granted on 25th October 2023 is hereby set aside.”
By this, the final funeral rites of the late leader will proceed as scheduled by the funeral planning committee.
Injunction
Seven people secured a joint court injunction against the late Naa Dedei Omaedru III’s final funeral rites and burial on Wednesday.
They include Nuumo Emmanuel T. Antia We, Head of the Antie We of Kpone, Nii Addey Oba-Aasaa II, Ankobea of Antie We of Kpone, Shippi Antie I, Saduase Shippi Kpone, Charles Nii Kotey Kotey, Head of Naa Dedei Omaedru We Family of Faase, Accra and Asafoatse Nii Kotey Ga II.
The rest are Oseahene of Ga Manye Stool and Principal Elder of the Naa Dedei Omaedru We of Faase Accra, Michael Nii Ofei Danso of unnumbered House Accra, Principal Elder of Naa Dedei Omaedru We of Faase Accra and Naa Yomofio, Linguist of Ga Manye Naa Dedei Omaedru We.
The injunction was supposed to be valid for ten days.
“It is hereby ORDERED Defendants/Respondents or the Funeral Committee chaired by Nii Otintor II, all members of the committee, their privies, workmen, assigns and all persons working through them are restrained from handling, organizing, touching performing or dealing with the remained of the Late Queen Mother, Naa Dedei Omaedru III in any manner for a period of ten (10) days,” the order granted on October 25 read.
Reason Behind Injunction
The injunction was secured by the relatives of the late queen mother who hold they have been sidelined in arrangements for the funeral.
“It is our belief that it should be a partnership between the family and the Ga Traditional Council. However, they are pushing us aside. We have been cautioning them to slow down so that we can talk and find a way forward, but our calls have fallen on deaf ears. The body is with the family, and not with them. It is the family that sent the body to the morgue. Everyone knows that the body is with us, but they have said that with or without the body, they will continue with the funeral,” a member of the Ga Manye family, Abdul Salam, is quoted to have said by CNR.
He explained, “And it is, as though, people are using power rather than the law, and we have been told time without number that the remains of our mother and queen belong to the state. And continuously, we have been told of this, but the fact is the remains belong to the wider family, that is the position of the law. We are talking about Naa Dedei Omaedru III, it’s our job as a family to also invite the Traditional Council because it is from the family that we elected and enstooled our mother and gave her for service to the state.”
The queen mother died in December 2022 after reigning for 59 years at the age of 88.
