Former Minister Cecilia Dapaah Files Defamation Lawsuit Against Multimedia Group

Former Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, Cecilia Dapaah, has taken legal action against the Multimedia Group, alleging that the media organization has defamed her through various publications. Dapaah’s claim, represented by her lawyer, Victoria Barth, centers around an application made by the Special Prosecutor on August 8, 2023, in the Financial and Economic Crime Division of the High Court. The application sought to confirm the seizure of funds from Dapaah’s matrimonial home in Abelemkpe and the freezing of her bank accounts.

According to Dapaah, the Special Prosecutor’s application did not specify the exact amounts of money in her bank accounts. However, she asserts that Multimedia’s news outlet, JoyNews, published false information regarding these amounts, attributing the information to unnamed and unverified sources. Specifically, on August 10, 2023, JoyNews ran a news article titled “OSP tracks $5m, finds GHc 48m in Cecilia Dapaah’s Prudential Bank accounts.” This article claimed that sources within the Office of the Special Prosecutor had disclosed the sums of money in Dapaah’s frozen bank accounts and mentioned the discovery of additional funds in another account.

Furthermore, on the same day, JoyNews shared multiple stories on its YouTube channel, including “Joy News Prime // Cecilia Dapaah Case: OSP tracks $5m in total bank transactions over a period” and “JoyNews Today // OSP finds $5million and Ghc48million in Cecilia Dapaah’s bank accounts.” Dapaah argues that these publications have led to negative perceptions of her character among the general public. This legal action marks her response to what she perceives as defamation by Multimedia Group.