A High Court in Kumasi is set to deliver its ruling in a case concerning an alleged civil marriage between the late Ghanaian musician Charles Kwadwo Fosu, popularly known as Daddy Lumba, and Mrs Akosua Serwaah Fosuh.

The presiding judge, Her Ladyship Dorinda Smith Arthur, is expected to announce the verdict later today, Friday (28 November).

The case has drawn national attention, having heard testimony from five witnesses – three for the plaintiff, Mrs Akosua Serwaah Fosuh, and one each for the first defendant, Abusua Panin Kofi Owusu, and the second defendant, Priscilla Ofori.

The plaintiff’s legal team submitted what they claim is the original copy of a civil marriage certificate between Mrs Fosuh and the late musician.

The document was admitted into evidence despite objections from the defence, which questioned its authenticity.

Cross examination

During cross-examination, Mr James Beniako Boateng, a tax analyst and witness for the second defendant, testified that he believed Daddy Lumba had ended his marriage to the plaintiff.

He told the court: “To my knowledge, the late Daddy Lumba ended the marriage between him and the plaintiff.”

Mr Boateng further said that during the singer’s 2010 marriage ceremony with the second defendant, Daddy Lumba “stated emphatically” to her family that his previous marriage had been dissolved, although no documents were produced to confirm this.

“I was present at the marriage ceremony of the late Daddy Lumba and Priscilla Ofori, when he was asked about his marriage with Akosua Serwaa. I was there to represent my wife who is a sister to Priscilla Ofori,” he said.

He added that the ceremony did not allow photography by the media.

Mr Boateng also recounted details of the couple’s life, including meeting Ms Ofori in 2006 while she was completing secondary school, and that she later entered nursing school but left at Daddy Lumba’s request.

He testified that the couple were in a relationship for about four years before marrying and now have six children together.

On the musician’s health, Mr Boateng said he had seen him “seated in a wheelchair after his spine surgery in 2013” but did not observe him bedridden.

He also described their living arrangements, saying that after marrying Ms Ofori, the couple initially lived at Tantara Hills in Accra before moving to East Legon in 2016.

Recalling an incident in 2018, Mr Boateng said that when the plaintiff returned to Ghana to perform her late mother’s funeral rites, Daddy Lumba instructed Ms Ofori to prepare the Tantara Hills residence.

“She prepared the place for her arrival not as a maid but as the current wife of the late Daddy Lumba,” he said.