The case was an appeal from a conviction for failing to attend a meeting of the Kumasi Traditional Council,
which was an offence under the Chieftaincy (Amendment) Decree, 1966 (N.L.C. 112), para. 5A¹².
The appellant, Ababio, was the chief of Kaase and a member of the Kumasi Traditional Council. He argued
that he was not affected by the Decree, as his stool was not among those listed in the First Schedule, which
contained the names of chiefs who were reduced in status by the Decree¹².
He also argued that he had already suffered the customary sanction of destoolment for his failure to attend
the meeting, and that the prosecution under the Decree put him in double jeopardy¹².
The High Court, per Mensa Boison J., dismissed the appeal and upheld the conviction. The court held that
the Decree applied to all chiefs who were members of the Traditional Councils, regardless of whether their
stools were listed in the First Schedule or not¹².
The court also held that destoolment was not a punishment for the same offence as the prosecution under
the Decree, but a sanction for breaching a customary obligation. Therefore, there was no double jeopardy
involved¹².
The relevance of the case is that it shows how the legal system in Ghana deals with the interaction between
customary law and statutory law, especially in matters relating to chieftaincy. It also illustrates how the courts
interpret and apply decrees issued by military regimes, which often have wide and vague provisions³.
(1) Case Brief for Ababio V THE REP – ABABIO V. THE REPUBLIC [1972] 1 GLR ….
https://www.studocu.com/row/document/ghana-institute-of-management-and-publicadministration/law/case-brief-for-ababio-v-the-rep/20132416.
(2) Ababio v. Republic [1972] 1 GLR 347 – LAW – Studocu.
https://www.studocu.com/row/document/ghana-institute-of-management-an Huid-publicadministration/law/ababio-v-republic-1972-1-glr-347/21675564.
(3) Ababio v. THE Republic – ABABIO v. THE REPUBLIC [1972] 1 GLR 347 ….https://www.studocu.com/row/document/pentecost-university-college/constitutional-law/ababio-v-therepublic/66681146.
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