Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyapong has expressed joy over his victory against investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas, and dedicated it to former Ghana Football Association (GFA) president, Kwasi Nyantakyi.
This follows a Wednesday, March 15 ruling of the Accra High Court which dismissed the 25 million defamation lawsuit Anas Aremeyaw Anas filed against the lawmaker cum businessman in 2018.
He claimed in the lawsuit that Mr Agyapong defamed him in a documentary he aired on various platforms titled “Who watches the watchman”. Anas prayed the court to award damages against Agyapong and compelled him to clear his name.
However, the High Court presided over by Justice Eric Baah held that Anas Aremeyaw Anas failed to prove that Ken Agyapong defamed him by airing the documentary. In the court’s view, the documentary in question rather exposed shady deals that Anas and his associates were involved in.
The judge went on further to chastise Anas, saying what he and his associates engaged could not be called investigative journalism but rather investigative terrorism and that Agyapong was justified to call Anas “a blackmailer, corrupt, an extortionist, and evil”.
“I find the claims by the plaintiff [Anas Aremeyaw Anas) meritless and they are hereby dismissed,” Justice Baah is quoted to have ruled.
It would be recalled that an investigative work dubbed “Number 12” exposed corruption in Ghana football and captured the then GFA president Nyantakyi taking bribes from undercover journalists.
Reacting to the High Court ruling, Kennedy Agyapong said his legal victory over Anas is a victory for Nayantakyi.
“We have to be bold to speak the truth, Anas goes ahead to [allegedly] defame people and gets away. It is only in this country that a journalist covers his face to go and give witness when a while Supreme Court judges are sitting there.
“All I am saying is the victory is for Kwasi Nyatkayi,” he is quoted to have said.
Anas Aremeyaw Anas has not responded to the court ruling yet.
Source: ANDREAS KAMASAH