A Kumasi High Court has admitted into evidence a video clip in which the late highlife legend Daddy Lumba is seen discussing who performed the in-law rites at his late mother’s funeral.
The clip’s admission sparked intense debate on Monday, November 17, after lawyers for Akosua Serwaa Fosuh who claims to be the legal wife of the late musician, born Charles Kwadwo Fosuh strongly objected to its inclusion.
The video, which captures Daddy Lumba recounting how his first love, the late Theresah Abresseh, contributed to his mother’s funeral, was tendered by lawyers for Abusuapanin Kofi Owusu, the first defendant. The evidence, marked as DL5, had already been referenced during the Case Management Conference.
Akosua Serwaa Fosuh is asking the court to declare her the sole surviving wife and the only person entitled to perform the widowhood rites at the musician’s funeral.
During cross-examination, counsel for Abusuapanin Owusu, Dominic Kwadwo Osei, asked the legal attorney of Akosua Serwaa Fosuh to identify the video. But lawyer William Kusi, representing the plaintiff, objected, arguing that evidence cannot be tendered when the plaintiff does not know the origin or authorship of the document. He insisted that merely recognizing the person in the video does not give the witness the capacity to respond to it, and that admitting it would amount to injustice.
The objection followed an attempt by Dominic Kwadwo Osei to have the plaintiff’s attorney, Georgina Osei Bonsu, identify Daddy Lumba in the video as he described how Theresah Abebresse performed the in-law rites (Nseyie) at his late mother Amma Saah’s funeral.
Presiding judge Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur overruled the objection and admitted the video clip, marking a significant turning point in the proceedings.
However, once cross-examination resumed, the plaintiff’s attorney argued that the video had been tampered with, stating that neither her client’s account nor that of the late musician’s family suggested that Theresah Abebresse performed the rites. She said she has photographic evidence showing that Akosua Serwaa Fosuh performed the Nseyie.
This prompted counsel for the first defendant to suggest that the plaintiff’s refusal to perform the in-law rites at Daddy Lumba’s mother’s funeral was the root of the estrangement between the couple. He further implied that the emotional pain caused by this incident explained why the musician did not attend Akosua Serwaa Fosuh’s mother’s funeral in January 2018 a claim the attorney rejected.
Earlier in the hearing, the first defendant’s lawyer challenged the authenticity of the marriage certificate tendered by Akosua Serwaa Fosuh, arguing that because she previously bore the name Akosua Serwaa Schindler, different from her birth name, the certificate belonged to someone else.
Lawyers for Priscilla Ofori, also known as Odo Broni, also questioned the attorney about her relationship with the Fosuh family. She explained that she met Daddy Lumba in the United States during his 2003 concert and had visited the couple in Germany at least three times with her children. She confirmed she was not present at the 1991 traditional marriage at Bomso or the 2004 civil marriage ceremony in Germany.
The court is expected to rule on the case on November 25, 2025.
Cross-examination continues on Tuesday, November 18, following seven hours of proceedings, as the matter is being heard on a daily basis.
