Sue Korku Anyidoho for exhuming Atta Mill’s body without family’s consent – Opinion

Sue Korku Anyidoho and allies for exhuming Atta Mill’s body without the family’s consent. To sue or not to sue, let us look at the issues and the law.

It has been established that the remains of the Late Former President John Evans Atta Mills of Ghana have been exhumed without the family knowing. To exhume or remove a dead body implies bringing it out from the ground after it has been buried. The action may be legal or illegal given the facts relating to it.

This write-up looks at who can give an order for a body to be exhumed, the reasons why such a decision may become necessary, what the laws of Ghana say about the exhumation as well as the call for the family of the late president to initiate a legal process at the court.

The body of a deceased person can be exhumed for the family of the deceased if they wish, and in some instances, one will need the law court or an order of a sought to do that. Often the body may be removed for reburial at another location by the family.

Public health reasons may cause bodies to be exhumed, for instance, if there is a need to relocate the cemetery to another location.

In some instances, the Minister for Justice or any such person in a country may order an exhumation as part of a criminal investigation.

In all these, there are laid down procedures that are made clear and known to the public or family.

Within the cultural certain of Ghana and Africa, once a person dies, his mortal remains/body belongs to the family irrespective of his status in life and his or her contributions to the nation.

For the body of the dead to be exhumed for any reason, official permission needs to be sought from the family if the family is accessible, They will have to approve the removal or transfer. 

The news that the body of the late president of Ghana John Evans Atta Mills has been exhumed led by Mr. Korku Anyidoho without the permission or official knowledge of the family is very disturbing. 

Any right-thinking member of society without any malice would agree that the actions of those managing the Asomdwe park were very wrong culturally and in all regards for failing to keep the family in the known. The body was exhumed to pave way for renovations toward the 10th year anniversary of the demise of John Fiifi Atta Mills

If it’s true Korku Anyidoho and Nana Addo have exhumed Prof Mills’ body without the family’s consent, they must be sued.

Being a president or the CEO of the said park never gives you power, nor does it give you the right to do as you wish.

For a body to be exhumed, an exhumation license is often issued in civilized societies and a certified copy of the death certificate issued before burial is required.

A body may not be permitted to be exhumed if the next of kin or the family has not given consent or the body cannot be identified at the burial ground or is the exhumation may be a difficult process or the conditions must be met per the exhumation license cannot be met. All these and others must be fulfilled for the exhumation to start, irrespective of the status of the person while he or she was alive.  

A government may also give an institution or individual with a certain authority the power to exhume a body for any reason. However, tying this into the case at hand and the cultural chameleon of Ghana, the family cannot be left in the dark if such a process will take place, especially given the status of the deceased.

Those who led and did the exhumation of the late president’s remains must eat a humble pie instead of showing levels of arrogance per their public statements because they do not have authority to exhume no matter the powers they have from the state because it is the remains of the former president that we are talking about here.

Per Ghana’s Registration Of Births And Deaths Act, 1965 ACT 301 section (3) Subject to the Coroners Act, 1960 (Act 18), a person shall not exhume or after burial remove a corpse except under subsection (1). (4) A person who contravenes a provision of this section commits an offence and is liable to a fine not exceeding two hundred and fifty penalty units or to a term of imprisonment not exceeding one year, or to both the fine and the imprisonment.

The above law applied to the remains of the high and low.

Again Ghana’s Coroners Act, 1960 Act 18, Section 9 subsection 2,3 and 4 states as follows

.(2) Despite a law or custom to the contrary, the coroner may, after notice to the Medical Officer of Health of the district of the intention so to do, order the exhumation of the body of a deceased person under the superintendence of a registered medical practitioner.

(3) The expenses of the exhumation and re-interment shall be paid on the coroner’s order from the public revenue.

(4) An exhumation shall not be ordered where, in the opinion of the coroner, it would be harmful to the public health.

Both sources do not make direct mention of the need to inform the family of a deceased before exhuming the body, however this can be implied from the law and the cultural practices of the family of the buried whose body has been exhumed.

Calls have been made for the family of the late president who are not happy about what has been done to sue those who carried out the exhumation without their consent. This option is open unless there are diplomatic talks behind the scene which may prevent this from happening, or else the family led by the brother of the late President should test the laws of Ghana on exhumation of the remains of a person without the consent and approval of the family given the personality of the deceased. At best, this may die a natural death when it stops trending. 

Sue Korku Anyidoho for exhuming Atta Mill’s body without the family’s consent? What is your take on this?