Election 2020
Attorney General Files Motion To Quash Tsikata’s Injunction Against Amewu’s Election As Hohoe MP
The Attorney General has filed a motion on notice at the Supreme Court, to quash the decision of the Ho High Court, that granted an interim injunction in an ex parte application to stop the Electoral Commission (EC) from gazetting the Parliamentary results of the Hohoe Constituency in the 7 December 2020 elections.
The Attorney General is praying the Supreme Court to reverse the High Court’s decision, stopping the EC from gazetting the Hohoe parliamentary results.
The motion, among others, is seeking an order of certiorari directed at the High Court, Ho, Volta Region, with Justice George Buadi, presiding, to bring into this Court for the purpose of being quashed the orders of the Court dated 23 December, 2020 in Suit No. E12/40/2021 entitled “In the matter of an application under Article 33 of the Constitution, 1992 and order 67 of the High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2004 (C.I.47) and the Inherent Jurisdiction of the High Court between Professor Margaret Kweku, Simon Alan Opoku-Mintah, John Kwame Obompeh, Godfried Koku Fofie, Felix Quarshie and the Electoral Commission, Wisdom Kofi Akpakli, John Peter Amewu and The Attorney-General”.
Additionally, the Attorney General is also seeking an order prohibiting the High Court, Ho, Volta Region from further hearing or conduct of proceedings in the said case. It is the contention of the Attorney General that the orders of the Ho High Court dated 23 December, 2020, constituted a patent error on the face of the record to the extent that they purported to confer on the applicants (interested parties herein), non-existent voting rights in respect of the Hohoe Constituency in the Volta Region.
Argument of the Attorney General
According to the statement of case as filed by the Attorney General on behalf of the Member of Parliament-elect for the Hohoe Constituency, the facts of the case make it abundantly clear that the pursuit of the action filed by the interested parties at the High Court, Ho, is an attempt to enforce a non-existent right.
“The interested parties have already been told by this Honoruable Court that, to the extent that C. I. 95 places their traditional areas of Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe and Lolobi in the Hohoe Constituency, same is unconstitutional. CI 95 ought to be amended in order to place the said traditional areas in the Oti Region. They ceased to be part of the Hohoe Constituency in Volta Region immediately the Oti Region was created and they were put thereunder.
“The alleged failure of the Electoral Commission to amend CI 95 to give effect to the boundaries of the new regions, does not mean that the interested parties together with the residents of the 4 areas, can continue to assert voting rights in the Hohoe Constituency. To do so will be inconsistent with article 47(2) which prohibits a constituency from straddling two regions, and will create further constitutional chaos,” the Statement of Case noted.
“It is thus beyond doubt that the action at the High Court, Ho is a palpable abuse of the process. The wrongful assumption of jurisdiction by Justice Buadi, was a serious error apparent on the face of the record. This Court ought to exercise its supervisory jurisdiction to prevent a situation where the interested parties will, through the backdoor, surreptitiously seek to assert the right to vote in a manner which is constitutionally frowned upon.
“The interested parties’ case is borne out of mischief and an attempt to judicially sanction an unconstitutionality. It is merely a vile attempt to upset the hard won electoral victory of the winner of the parliamentary election in Hohoe constituency through an unjustified invocation of the court’s human rights jurisdiction,” the Attorney General further stated.
Source: AsaaseRadio
Election 2020
Supreme Court’s Ruling Against My Interrogatories Is A Miscarriage of Justice – John Mahama
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) flagbearer for the 2020 polls, John Mahama, has argued that denying him the opportunity to serve interrogatories on the Electoral Commission (EC) will damage his election petition case at the Supreme Court.
Mahama’s concern is contained in his fresh application seeking to halt the election petition until the Supreme Court reviews it’s ruling on some 12 questions (interrogatories) he wants the Electoral Commission to answer.
The apex court in dismissing the interrogatories application said Mr. Mahama’s legal team failed to convince the court on the relevance of the questions.
In the application for a stay of proceedings, Mr. Mahama said he was compelled by “certain fundamental errors of law that the court made in its ruling leading to a miscarriage of justice.”
He said the denial of the chance to pose the interrogatories to the EC was “a serious miscarriage of justice which we expect to have remedied in the review.”
“At the hearing of this application, counsel will crave the indulgence of the Court to refer to the statement of case in support of the application for review, particular, to show that there are indeed serious matters of law that are to be determined in this review application, and I am likely to succeed, as the ruling of the court is manifestly in error.”
Though time has been noted as a concern in the case, Mr. Mahama further maintains that the “use of the mechanism of interrogatories will ensure a speedier trial.”
On why he wants the petition halted, Mr Mahama said there would be “irreparable harm” caused to his case because of the effect on pre-trial processes.
Source: CitiNewsRoom
Election 2020
You Have Not Been Able To Prove That Your Application Is Relevant – Supreme Court Tells Tsatsu Tsikata
The Supreme Court (SC) said the crucial issue of relevancy has not been established in the application in the determination of the motion filed by Former President John Dramani Mahama, the Petitioner in Election 2020 Petition.
The Petitioner/Applicant has prayed the Court to grant the application to serve interrogatories. The basis for the application as argued by learned Counsel for the Petitioner/Applicant was to assist the Court to narrow issues for the trial of the Petition.
A Seven-Member SC Panel Chaired by Chief Justice Anin Yeboah said interrogatories under Common Law was discretionary, it should be granted or refused when all the circumstances are taken into consideration.
Other members are Justice Y. Appau, Justice S. K. Marful-Sau, Justice N. A. Amegatcher, Professor N. A. Kotey, Ms Mariama Owusu and Mrs Gertrude Torkornoo.
It should be noted that the questions seeks to elicit answers to the issues raised by and the reliefs sought in the Petition.
It said interrogatories must be relevant to the issues and relate to the matters in controversy between the parties, in this case the Petitioner and the Electoral Commission, the First Respondent.
The Court said reference was made to the 2013 Election Petition titled: Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and two others vrs President Mahama and two others [2013] SCGLR 50, in which an application to serve interrogates was granted by this Court.
However, subsequent to 2013, several statutory amendments have been made by Constitutional Instrument 99 of 2016 which has restricted the practice and procedure of this Court as regards Election Petition.
It said indeed, Rule 69 (c) (4) of the Supreme Court amendment Rules C. I. 99 directs the expeditious disposal of the Petition and sets timelines for this Court to dispose of the Petition.
It implies that, even amendments ought not to be sought and granted as well as joinder of parties. Subsequent statutory amendments pointed out after 2013 have provided us with new procedural regime and strict timelines.
The Court said; “we are strictly bound to comply with C. I. 99 and therefore we will not apply Order 22 of C. I. 47 of 2004 in this circumstance.
“We accordingly refuse to grant the application and same is accordingly dismissed,” it added.
The Court, then directed the parties to file the issues for determination.
Source: GNA
Election 2020
You Committed Fundamental Errors Of Law In Interrogatories Ruling – Mahama’s Lawyers Tell Supreme Court Judges
Documents filed by lawyers for 2020 NDC Presidential Candidate John Dramani Mahama describes a recent ruling of the Supreme Court as riddled with fundamental errors of law that has resulted in grave injustice.
Mr. Mahama who lost Ghana’s 2020 elections to Nana Akufo-Addo has filed an election petition at the Supreme Court seeking to have the results annulled.
He alleges Mr. Akufo-Addo benefited from vote padding and computational errors supervised and carried out by the Electoral Commission.
His lawyers asked that the Supreme Court allows the EC Chairperson to answer 12 questions. (Interrogatories).
Lead Counsel Tsatsu Tsikata said the interrogatories were critical as it would help the apex court determine the authenticity of the results that saw the NPP presidential candidate, emerging as the winner of the 2020 polls.
Among others, lawyers for the petitioner had asked that the EC answers if the National Communications Authority (NCA) played any role or facilitated in any way, the transmission of the election results to its headquarters.
Again, Mr Mahama wanted to know how the Chairperson of the EC, Jean Mensa, arrived at the figures she used in declaring candidate Nana Akufo-Addo as the winner of the 2020 presidential poll.
Giving its verdict on the motion, the Supreme Court held the view that Lawyer Tsatsu was relying on CI 47 while the current rule in force relating to the Supreme Court is the CI 99.
Also, the request requires the exercise of discretionary power that is granted when a case for relevance is made but since this has not been established hence the decision to dismiss the motion.
Source: MyJoyOnline
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