Spartan Ives Limited, operators of renowned Polo Beach Club in Accra, has filed an application for injunction seeking to restrain the management of Labadi Beach Hotel from going ahead to demolish the structures of the Club, as threatened by Richard Jakpa, the Director of Special Operations at the National Security Secretariat.
The two entities have been locked in a legal battle initiated by Labadi Beach Hotel for a piece of land at the beachfront, and the matter is currently pending before a High Court in Accra.
While the parties are yet to file their respective witness statements and other processes as directed by the trial court, the Club in an affidavit in support of the application avers that the Hotel has secured the assistance of Jakpa who has threatened to demolish Polo Beach Club.
According to the application, Jakpa informed the operators of the Club that Labadi Beach Hotel wants Polo Beach Club demolished because the entire Labadi Beachfront lands fall within an Executive Instrument (EI) and, therefore, owned by the Government of Ghana.
The Hotel also claims that the entire Labadi Beachfront lands constitute a buffer zone between the water body (the sea) and not for putting up structures/buildings, and that the Polo Beach Club was built on the beachfront without a building permit.
Polo Beach Club vehemently denies all these allegations, pointing out that Labadi Beach Hotel itself has allegedly leased or rented adjoining beachfront space from the La Stool over several years and made payments to the La Stool, including payments as recently as 2023.
The application argues that it is incomprehensible for the Hotel to now contend that the entire beachfront is government land falling under EI 10 while simultaneously dealing with and paying the La Stool for beachfront occupation.
Polo Beach Club is asking the court to urgently grant an injunction restraining Labadi Beach Hotel, its agents and assigns as well as Jakpa and any other person authorised by him from taking any steps to demolish or interfere with the Club, as such an action will render the substantive matter before the court nugatory.
Threats
The affidavit in support avers that the instant application for injunction is necessitated by threats from Jakpa, who allegedly informed the officials of Polo Beach Club, including its lawyer, that Labadi Beach Hotel wanted the Club demolished and that the decision was “non-negotiable and irreversible.”
It states that despite being informed that the land dispute was already before a court, Jakpa, according to court documents, rejected the suggestion that the parties should allow the court to determine the issue and indicated that the demolition would proceed based on his own research.
“That Mr. Jakpa made it clear that the decision to embark on the demolition exercise requested by the Respondent and the Hotel was non-negotiable and irreversible and encouraged cooperation as any attempt to oppose the exercise or to be combative will result in demolition of the Polo Beach Club without any recourse to Applicant.”
The Hotel has subsequently appointed a consultant to enter the Polo Beach Club and conduct a valuation for purposes of determining a proposed “small compensation,” which Jakpa pointed out that he would be able to secure for the management of the Club from the Hotel as a result of the demolition.
The application points out that the Club fears that refusal to cooperate with the valuation could provoke an immediate demolition by the “unpredictable Mr. Jakpa,” noting that the court’s intervention is necessary to ensure that a party does not obtain, through administrative action, the very relief it is asking the court to grant after trial.
Lawful Ownership
Polo Beach Club has demonstrated its lawful ownership of the disputed land, pointing out that it has a 20-year lease from the La Stool, made substantial payments toward that lease as well as obtained building and operating permits from the La Dade-Kotopon Municipal Assembly.
It also argues that Polo Beach Club has a market value of approximately GH¢41.3 million, with a forced-sale value of approximately GH¢30.975 million.
It also employs more than 100 people and has become a significant tourism and events venue attracting international visitors and celebrities to Ghana.
The Club also points out that it has developed and protected portions of the beachfront, including substantial works intended to address tidal flooding.
It further contends that Labadi Beach Hotel was fully aware of, and even participated in, the development of the Polo Beach Club, with the former and current Managing Directors of the Hotel allegedly visiting the construction site, as well as the then Director-General of SSNIT during the construction process in connection with an earlier proposed joint venture.
The Club also argues that the Hotel cannot use an assertion of government ownership as a basis for demolishing its structure and then take the land for its own expansion.
It also argues that none of Jakpa’s stated reasons establishes a lawful basis for Labadi Beach Hotel to take possession of the disputed land or demolish the Polo Beach Club’s structures.
The Club is therefore urging the court to grant the injunction, as it is necessary to protect the sanctity of the pending trial and preserve the court’s jurisdiction and the integrity of the pending proceedings.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak
