A seller of onions at the busy Makola Market in Accra has sued telecommunications giant, Telecel Ghana, over GH¢2 million.
The trader, Faustina Djagbele Abbey, asserts that the company utilized her image in their adverts without her consent or knowledge.
Faustina claims that she was appalled to find out that her image was plastered on billboards and posted on social media as part of Telecel campaign to advertise its Red Save product.
The photograph was seemingly captured on a day she thought was a normal market day- without any contract, consent form, or notice of its commercial use.
My customers informed me that they had seen my face on a large billboard. I did not believe it until I went to see it myself, she said in her court statement.
Through her lawyer, Bernard Owiredu Donkor of Thompson Law Consult, Faustina is seeking the telecom company to remove all billboards and advertisements that have her image on them, including television, internet, and print.
However, that is not the end of it. The market woman claims that the unwanted fame has attracted unwanted attention and psychological torture.
She says that friends and family now expect her to have become rich, which creates tension and even broken relationships. Others even said that she was well paid to feature in the advertisement.
“I did not choose this. People are now seeing me differently and it is taking a toll on my peace of mind,” she added.
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The legal team of Faustina claims that her right to privacy as stipulated in Article 18 of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana has been infringed.
That article safeguards people against any intrusion into their personal life, except on legal grounds in the interest of the common good.
Telecel, the company that already controls more than 17 percent of the telecom market in Ghana, has not yet reacted publicly to the lawsuit.
The case is a significant issue concerning the treatment of ordinary Ghanaians, particularly those in the informal sectors, in the media and advertising industry.
The case has been in the limelight, and many are asking: can a market woman actually challenge a telecom giant and succeed?
