Former Minister of Gender, Child, and Social Protection, Nana Oye Bampoe Addo, has filed a libel lawsuit against her ex-husband, Tony Lithur, a senior legal practitioner. 

The lawsuit stems from defamatory statements made during their divorce proceedings initiated by Mr. Lithur on 2 May, 2018.

Nana Oye and Tony Lithur were customarily married on April 14, 1991, and later converted their marriage into an ordinance marriage in January 1998. 

Their marital troubles became public when Mr. Lithur filed for divorce in 2018.

According to Nana Oye, the divorce petition contained false and defamatory statements that were maliciously published, leading her to demand USD500,000 in general damages and USD1 million in exemplary damages.

In his divorce petition and subsequent response dated 9 July, 2018, Mr. Lithur allegedly described Nana Oye with unprintable words.

He also claimed she was a corrupt official who intended to purchase an investment property in South Africa valued between USD350,000 and USD500,000, implying she misused public funds.

These allegations, according to Nana Oye, were widely disseminated across various media platforms, causing significant harm to her reputation. 

The claims also triggered an investigation by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) into possible corruption, money laundering, and illegal acquisition of property in South Africa. Nana Oye was subsequently admitted to bail and had to defend herself legally.

Nana Oye vehemently denied all allegations, asserting that Mr. Lithur’s statements were intentionally false and aimed at damaging her reputation. She stated that due to these defamatory statements, she suffered public ridicule, hatred, scandal, and contempt. 

The former minister also faced numerous insults, humiliation, and had to resign from lecturing at a tertiary institution due to the backlash.

“I have been seriously injured in my reputation and shunned,” she stated, adding that the publication led to "embarrassing questions and humiliating treatments from different people, including strangers, associates, friends, family members, foreigners, some members of the international community, international acquaintances, and colleague professionals."

Nana Oye is seeking several reliefs, including a perpetual injunction to prevent Mr. Lithur from making or publishing further defamatory statements. 

She is also demanding a retraction and public apology from Mr. Lithur, to be published across his social media platforms and the website of Lithur, Brew & Company.