Original Manufacturers and Embossment Company Limited, the sole company contracted by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority to produce vehicle number plates for 2026, has been joined as a defendant in an ongoing High Court case challenging the introduction of a new digital number plate system.

The company, owned by Nyarko Esumadu Appiah, also known as Daasebre, is now a co defendant alongside the DVLA in a suit filed by the Vehicle Embossment Manufacturers Association of Ghana and its members. The plaintiffs are contesting the DVLA’s decision to discontinue the use of multiple licensed embossers and instead award both manufacturing and embossment responsibilities to a single entity.

The suit seeks an interlocutory injunction to restrain the DVLA from rolling out digitalised vehicle number plates or introducing any new registration plates until the court determines the substantive issues in the case. The plaintiffs are also asking the court to prevent the DVLA from implementing any alternative arrangement for the embossment and supply of number plates outside the existing framework that involves licensed embossers.

According to the plaintiffs, the award of both manufacturing and embossment contracts to one company is unprecedented and inconsistent with established practice in the vehicle registration system. They argue that the decision undermines industry participation and raises concerns about procurement processes and regulatory compliance. As part of their reliefs, they are seeking an order compelling the DVLA to continue engaging licensed embossers for 2026 and subsequent years.

The High Court in Accra, presided over by Justice Isaac Addo, granted the application for joinder on Friday, January 23, 2026. The decision followed confirmation from counsel for both the plaintiffs and the DVLA that they had no objection to the application filed by Original Manufacturers and Embossment Company Limited.

Counsel for the plaintiffs informed the court that they had been served with the joinder application, which had a return date of February 24, 2026, and requested that the court abridge the time to allow the motion to be heard immediately. Counsel for the DVLA, Sigiri Edmund Kadiri, also stated that the authority did not oppose the joinder.

In granting the application, Justice Addo said the court had reviewed the motion papers and supporting affidavit and was satisfied that the company had sufficient interest in the matter to be joined. The court accordingly ordered that Original Manufacturers and Embossment Company Limited be added as the second defendant.

The court further directed the plaintiffs to amend their writ of summons and statement of claim to reflect the joinder and ordered that all processes filed in the case be served on the newly added defendant. The matter has been adjourned to February 6, 2026, for further proceedings.

The case stems from a suit filed in December 2025 by BEMENCO Embossment Ltd and other members of the Vehicle Embossment Manufacturers Association of Ghana. The plaintiffs are challenging the DVLA’s move to introduce a digital vehicle number plate embossment system, arguing that the decision adversely affects their operations and excludes them from a process they have traditionally participated in.

The DVLA maintains that the introduction of the digital number plate system falls within its statutory mandate and is intended to enhance vehicle identification, security and registration efficiency. Original Manufacturers and Embossment Company Limited applied to be joined to the suit on the grounds that the outcome of the case could significantly affect its contractual and commercial interests.