Forgive them; they know not the power of love – Court tells former Minister after son, nephew challenge his marriage

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The High Court at Cape Coast has asked a former Education Minister under the Kufuor government, Professor Dominic Fobih, to forgive his son and nephew for an action against his marriage to a 30-year-old lady.

According to the court the action has no justifiable grounds because it does not see why the 80-year-old cannot be married to the love of his life, Mary Nyamekye Oduro.

You may recall the wide public interest and an outburst in May 2023 after the traditional wedding video of the former minister went viral.

It was the case of the caveators that the decision of Prof Fobih to marry Mary was based on unsound reasoning having suffered and recovered from a stroke.

They also argued that the age difference between their dad and his bride, which is about fifty years, would weigh heavily on the union and result in a nasty divorce, as had been his lot in his last three marriages.

Furthermore, the lady was not spared, as she was described as having ulterior motives to enter marriage with a man of that age, and further mention was made of her alleged serial infidelity.

Moreover, the caveators showed great concern in their averment as they saw their father’s relationship with the lady as a threat because they believed that the lady, in keeping with evolving practice, would beguile him to leave his property to her and kill him.

Another issue that the court was confronted with was whether Professor Fobih had a pending marriage with one Beatrice Boateng, which he stated was dissolved customarily in 2020.

In its judgment, the court presided over by Justice Bernard Bentil, found that indeed the marriage between Prof Fobih and Beatrice Boateng had been dissolved, thus describing the caveators’ affidavit as  ‘ empty and bereft of any substance to ground their claim.’

In the end, the court held that the caveat had no justifiable ground and thus cleared Prof. Fobih and Mary Nyamekye as fit to marry.

The court then asked Professor Fobih to forgive his son (Dr. Nick Fobih) and nephew (Nicholas Fobih) and duly awarded a cost of GHC 20,000, GHC 20,000, and GHC 10,000 against the three caveators, respectively.

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