Afenyo-Markin’s GH¢15m defamation suit against Sammy Gyamfi thrown out by Hight Court
The High Court has struck out a defamation lawsuit filed by Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin against Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) Chief Executive Officer Sammy Gyamfi over alleged procedural irregularities in the writ of summons.
The legal action followed a public dispute between the two over reported losses of US$1.7 billion linked to the Bank of Ghana’s Domestic Gold Purchase Programme in 2025. While Afenyo-Markin raised concerns about the reported losses, Gyamfi challenged his claims and subsequently accused him of attempted extortion.
Following the exchange, Afenyo-Markin filed a defamation suit against the GoldBod CEO. However, Gyamfi’s lawyers entered a conditional appearance and applied to have the writ set aside, arguing that it failed to meet the requirements of the High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2004 (C.I. 47).
In its ruling, the court held that Order 57 Rule 2 requires writs in libel cases to contain sufficient particulars of the allegedly defamatory publication to identify it. The judge stressed that the requirement was a mandatory procedural obligation, not merely a technical formality.
The court also rejected the argument that details contained in the statement of claim could remedy the defect, distinguishing the case from previous judicial decisions in which similar shortcomings had been treated differently.
Consequently, the court set aside both the writ of summons and the statement of claim filed by Afenyo-Markin on August 24, 2026.
