Daddy Lumba’s funeral hit by fresh lawsuit from family over memorial fund

The funeral of the late Charles Kwadwo Fosu, popularly known as Daddy Lumba, has been hit by a fresh lawsuit as relatives move to stop the organisation of his final rites, accusing the family head of sidelining them and making unauthorised withdrawals from a memorial account.

In a motion for an interlocutory injunction, the applicants, Obaapanin Afia Adomah and Robert Gyamfi, head of the singer’s immediate family, told the court that the first respondent, Kofi Owusu, who leads the Ekuona Royal Family of Nsuta and Parkoso, formed a funeral committee without informing them after the musician’s death.

Claims

They stated that the matter was reported to the Manhyia Palace, which directed the respondent to refrain from making decisions without the immediate family.

According to the applicants, donations made during the one-week observance at Independence Square were deposited in an account at CAL Bank, the second respondent, under the name “Daddy Lumba Memorial Foundation LBG”.

The applicants stated that the committee overseeing the one-week ceremony had been dissolved and a new committee was being established to supervise the final funeral rites.

However, before signatories to the fund could be agreed, the respondent allegedly withdrew GHC11,000 on 11 November and a further GHC60,000 without the family’s consent. They said he had also initiated steps to take an additional GHC 200,000 from the account.

The motion argued that the respondent had “arrogated to himself” sole authority over the funeral arrangements and fixed December 13 for the burial, mounting billboards without their approval.

The applicants said holding the funeral could hamper ongoing police investigations into the circumstances surrounding the musician’s death.

Reliefs

They asked the court to restrain the respondents—including Transition Funeral Home, named as the third defendant—from organising the funeral without their involvement.

The applicants said they risked suffering “irreparable harm” if the funds for the funeral were depleted, adding that they were responsible for giving the late musician a burial befitting his status. They argued that granting the injunction would not prejudice the defendants, who “have no personal interest” in the money.

The court has set Thursday (11 December) for the hearing.