15th September 2022
The Editor-In-Chief
The New Crusading Guide
Accra.
Dear Sir / Madam,
RETRACTION AND APOLOGY FOR DEFAMATORY CONTENT PUBLISHED IN THE NEW CRUSADING GUIDE NEWSPAPER
We write as Lawyers for and on behalf of Zonda Tec Ghana Limited and its Managing Director, Yang Yang, (hereinafter jointly referred to as “our Clients” and individually as “Zonda” and “Yang Yang”, where necessary), and have their instructions to state as follows:
- That on 14th September 2022, you published in your newspaper and on your website, an article with the following title:
”Chinese Nationals Loot State Lands…Flouts Court Injunction With Impunity”
- That in the said article, you stated, among others, the following:
- “Some highly connected Chinese nationals who are operating companies in the country have virtually taken over Cantonments lands around the AU Village. These Chinese nationals have staged attacks on owners of the lands amid the use of armed land guards and thugs believed to be of Chinese origin who in a Rambo style to harass and intimidate land owners”
- “The gang is also said to have demolish (sic) constructed fence wall (sic) and structure (sic) on plots of lands belonging to their rightful owners… Interestingly, several land guards and thugs of Chines origin invaded the plots of land with bulldozers and pulled down the fence wall (sic) erected by owners”
- “The illegal activities of these Chinese, this paper has learnt, was reported to the Ghana Police but due to the fact that the Chinese are well-connected, the police could not pursue the matter further. However, the Police hierarchy which is privy to the development has now teamed up with these Chinese nationals to defraud the people of their lands.”
- “Although the owners of the land subsequently reconstructed the fenced (sic) wall and that of the caretaker post, one of the Chinese Yang Yang has threatened to further pull-down the wall and any structure on the land. Meanwhile the Chinese nationals have commenced construction activities on the land and intend to appropriate plots belonging to the owners since they (the Chinese) have the backing of some top political figures.”
- “Meanwhile, these Chinese Nationals who are managers of the Zonda Tec Ghana Ltd., a Light and Heavy-duty equipment and vehicle trading company and its subsidiaries continue to flout an interlocutory injunction granted against them over the said parcel of land. There is a pending interlocutory injunction in a Suit No. LD/056/2022, against Zonda subsidiaries. However, they continue to work right in the immediate site of the police in the heart of the City.”
- Despite the interlocutory injunction against the Chinese company from developing the land, the Chinese are developing the land in frantic haste and with the support and protection of the police in total disregard to the orders of the High Court with utmost contempt.”
- Be hereby informed that the said statements in the article are completely false as neither Yang Yang nor any other officer of Zonda or its subsidiaries are involved in any acts of looting and/or taking over land situate around the AU village in Cantonments or any other part of the country for that matter; much less, doing so through acts of intimidation and violence against the purported landowners.
- Contrary to your malicious statements, impugning improper and/or unlawful conduct to our Clients, they are a very responsible and law abiding people/entities, who have in their about twelve (12) years of operation in Ghana, diligently complied with the laws and regulations of the land, while creating direct and indirect jobs for Ghanaians through their seven (7) branches across the length and breadth of Ghana as well as spearheading corporate social responsibility programmes such as road safety education, health screening, educational sponsorship.
- Accordingly, the said article is not only unfair but also defamatory as it casts Yang Yang as well as Zonda and or any entity connected to it, in the minds of reasonable or right-thinking members of society, as persons and/or entities, who are lawless, have no regard for Ghanaians, the laws of the land as well as the Courts as by law established.
In the circumstance, we have our Client’s instructions to DEMAND and WE HEREBY DEMAND within SEVEN (7) days of receipt of this Notice, a retraction and an unqualified apology to our clients, for peddling the aforementioned blatant and malicious falsehood about them through the same media you published the aforesaid falsehood and with the same prominence you gave the aforementioned article.
Counting on your cooperation to do the needful.
Yours faithfully,
NANA AGYEI BAFFUOR AWUAH
Senior Partner
Editor’s Note:
17th September 2022
Dear Sir / Madam,
RE: RETRACTION AND APOLOGY FOR DEFAMATORY CONTENT PUBLISHED IN THE NEW CRUSADING GUIDE NEWSPAPER
Management of the New Crusading Guide write to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated September 15, 2022 on the above subject.
We have taken note of the issues raised regarding our publication under the heading; ”Chinese Nationals Loot State Lands…Flouts Court Injunction With Impunity” which inadvertently impung the image and reputation of Zonda Tec Ghana Limited and its Managing Director, Yang Yang.
Having admitted fault and error on our side for implicating Yang Yang and the company in the said publication, we wish to offer an unqualified apology to the Zonda Tec Ghana Limited and its MD, Yang Yang.
We therefore retract their names and any references made to them in that publication.
Thank you.