Former president John Dramani Mahama’s election
petition suffered another jolt at the Supreme Court on Thursday when the apex
court dismissed his application for a review of its decision that disallowed
him from asking the Electoral Commission (EC) 12 questions in the case.
The nine-member
panel court in its ruling Thursday said the applicant had not met the
threshold to apply for review and was subsequently dismissed.
Two additional justices, Justice
Imoro Tanko and Justice Henrietta Mensah Bonsu were added to the earlier
seven-member panel for the review application.
The seven other justices on the panel hearing the petition to
determine whether or not President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is
the validly elected President of Ghana are the Chief Justice, Justice Kwasi
Anin Yeboah, Justice Yaw Apau, Justice Samuel Kofi Marful-Sau,
Justice Prof. Nii Ashie Kotey, Justice Nene A. O. Amegatcher, Justice
Gertrude Torkonoo and Justice Mariama Owusu
The
presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr John Dramani
Mahama, is challenging the declaration of President Akufo-Addo as the
winner of the 2020 presidential election.
Background
Mahama’s
lawyer, on 19 January 2021, moved a motion praying the court for leave to serve
certain questions on the Electoral Commission (Application for Interrogatories)
which he claimed if answered would narrow down the issues before the court.
The former
president in the application wanted the EC to answer among others, questions
relating to the processes involved in the transmission of results from the
polling station level, to the constituency level, to the regional offices of
the EC and subsequently to the Returning Officer of the presidential election,
Jean Mensa, at the EC office.
He also sought to solicit responses on whether or not the
National Communications Authority (NCA) in any way facilitated the transmission
of results from the various centres to the national headquarters of the EC.
The EC through its lawyer,
Justin Amenuvor, opposed the application urging the court not to grant it as it
did not raise any relevant issues that were in contention. It was the case of
the EC that the answers being sought by the petitioner were already contained
in their own petition and the responses of the respondents.
The court after going on recess
for about 45 minutes reconstituted and ruled that the application for
interrogatories by the petitioner were not grounded in law and that same is in
contravention of the rules that govern adjudication of the election petitions
(CI 99) which is the main issue before the court.
The application was dismissed on
the ruling of the Chief Justice on 19 January 2021.
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