A Kumasi High Court heard Tuesday that although highlife legend Charles Kwadwo Fosuh popularly known as Daddy Lumba had a long-term relationship with Priscilla Ofori, widely known as Odo Broni, the two were never married, according to testimony from the musician’s elder sister.
Ernestina Fosuh, also called Akosua Brempomaah, told the court that despite the couple having six children together, including one named after her, their relationship did not amount to a marriage.
Her testimony forms part of an ongoing dispute over who qualifies as the late musician’s legal spouse.
Legal Wife Contesting Alleged Marriage
The case was brought by Akosua Serwaa Fosuh, who maintains she is the late musician’s only surviving wife.
She is asking the court to formally declare her as the legitimate spouse, grant her the exclusive right to perform widowhood rites, and restrain Priscilla Ofori from presenting herself as Lumba’s wife.
Appearing before Her Ladyship Dorinda Smith-Arthur, Ernestina Fosuh said her brother confided in her about many aspects of his life, including his relationship with Priscilla Ofori. She said the musician relocated to Ghana to pursue a housing project and seek treatment for a back injury from a lorry accident.
Dispute Over €50,000 Loan
Explaining why Akosua Serwaa did not accompany her husband to Ghana, she said Lumba had urged his wife to reduce travel due to high airfare and an alleged €50,000 loan he had taken from a financial institution in Germany.
However, defence lawyer Dominic Kwadwo Osei challenged the claim, insisting no such loan existed.
Ernestina Fosu responded that although she could not provide documents in court, evidence “written in Dutch” was stored on her phone, and she was relying on what her brother told her.
Counsel pointed out inconsistencies, noting that in the plaintiff’s October 29, 2025 reply to the second defendant, the loan figure quoted was €100,000—not €50,000. Ernestina maintained she had relayed the information as she knew it.
Care and Support During Illness
On the issue of care, she testified that Odo Broni lived with the late musician during his ill health, while she provided support to both.
She insisted that despite that arrangement, it was Akosua Serwaa to whom he was legally married—customarily in 1991 at Bomso and later in a civil ceremony in Germany in 2004—events she personally witnessed.
She confirmed the six children the musician had with Priscilla Ofori, stating that her brother named all his third-born children after her and that Akosua Serwaa eventually learned about these children through her own kids, who visited Lumba during holidays.
Video and Audio Evidence Tendered in Court
Court proceedings intensified when defence counsel introduced video and audio evidence suggesting Ernestina had previously acknowledged Priscilla Ofori as a sister-in-law.
A video of Odo Broni wishing her a happy birthday on DL FM addressed her as “sister-in-law,” while an audio clip— which she admitted “looks like” her voice captured her referring to Odo Broni as “Akumaa,” meaning sister-in-law.
Ernestina rejected claims that another woman, Theresah Abrebrese, performed in-law rites during their mother’s death. She insisted it was Akosua Serwaa who completed the required “Nseyie” duties, adding that Theresah only assisted due to a longstanding relationship with the family.
She also recalled the late musician attending the funeral of Akosua Serwaa’s mother “in his black top and black cloth.”
Challenge to Medical Treatment Claims
Before adjournment, counsel for the second defendant, Akwasi Nyarko, questioned Ernestina’s account of where the musician received treatment, noting that he underwent surgery at FOCOS Orthopaedic Hospital in Pantang in 2013 not Tantra Hills as she stated.
Ernestina Fosuh responded that she had visited him at a Tantra Hills facility after returning from Germany.
The court adjourned proceedings to Wednesday, when Ernestina Fosuh is expected to continue her testimony.
Source :www.kumasimail.com
