Electoral Commission

  • Disqualification suit: Court orders PPP, EC to file statement of case

    The High court presided over by Justice Eric Kyei-Baffour has warned lawyers of both the Electoral Commission and Progressive People’s Party to file their statements of case simultaneously in the suit seeking judicial review of the disqualification of the PPP’s presidential candidate from the December polls.

    The court says it will at all times be guided by the timeline as far as election 2016 is concerned. As a result, the court has ordered that the filing be done by Monday October 24, and the parties will return to court the following day to make viva voca (oral submission) after which a date will be set for the judgement of the court.

    The founder and leader of the Progressive People’s Party, Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom has stated that he would not give up easily following his disqualification from the presidential race in the upcoming December polls.

    The party thus sued the EC at the High Court seeking an order of prohibition to restrain the EC from proceeding with balloting for position of presidential candidates for the December 7, elections.

    It also sought for”…a further order directed against the 1st Respondent in her capacity as Returning Officer for Presidential elections to grant the Applicant the opportunity to amend and alter the one anomaly found in his nomination papers as well as accept his nomination papers as amended or altered to enable him contest as a Presidential Candidate for the 7th December 2016 elections.”

    “And for such order or further as to this Honourable Court may deem fit,” the PPP’s suit added.

    Dr Nduom and 11 others were disqualified from the contest by the EC.

    Some of the reasons outlined by the EC that led to the disqualification of the aspirants are filing anomalies including fraudulent signatures, absence ofa required number of signatures and improper filling of nomination forms.


    Source: Ghana/StarrFMonline.com/103.5FM/Wilberforce Asare

  • Election 2016: 17 courts to handle electoral disputes

    The Chief Justice, Mrs Justice Georgina Theodora Wood, has designated 17 specialised courts to deal with electoral disputes that may arise before the December 7, 2016 presidential and parliamentary elections.

    Seventeen High Court judges have been assigned to handle anticipated electoral disputes throughout the country.

    The appointed justices, according to the Judicial Secretary, Mr Justice Alex Poku-Acheampong have been tasked to handle the cases expeditiously.

    He gave the breakdown of the judges assigned as follows: Greater Accra, six; Ashanti and Western, two each, while Eastern, Central, Upper West, Upper East, Northern, Volta and Brong Ahafo have been assigned a judge each.

    Concerns

    There are concerns that the December 7, 2016 electoral calendar could be negatively affected following the rising number of disputes between presidential aspirants and the Electoral Commission (EC), but the Judicial Secretary said there was no cause for alarm.

    “These specialised courts for electoral disputes will ensure that cases are heard expeditiously and on a day-to-day basis,” Mr Poku-Acheampong said.

    Disqualifications

    A number of subscribers of the presidential aspirants did not meet the requirements as stipulated in the Constitutional Instrument (C.I.) 94 meant for the conduct of the elections

    Some of the subscribers also sponsored more than one candidate with the same names and voter registration details.

    According to the EC, they only changed their signatures.

    At a press conference in Accra on Monday, October 10, 2016, the Chairperson of the EC, Mrs Charlotte Osei, disqualified 12 presidential aspirants.

    They were disqualified on the grounds of forgery, perjury, impersonation and deceit of public officer.

    Mrs Osei said the issue would be referred to the Ghana Police Service and the Attorney General for investigations and prosecution.

    Those disqualified are Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom of the Progressive People’s Party (PPP), Mr Hassan Ayariga of the All People’s Congress (APC), Dr Edward Nasigre Mahama of the People’s National Convention (PNC) and Mr Kofi Apaloo of Independent People’s Party (IPP).

    Others are Mr T.N. Ward Brew of the Democratic People’s Party (DPP), Mr Henry Lartey of the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP), Richard Tetteh of the United Development Systems Party (UDSP), Akua Donkor of the Ghana Freedom Party (GFP), Nana Agyenim Boateng of the United Freedom Party (UFP) and Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings of the National Democratic Party (NDP)..

    The others are Kwabena Agyei of RPD and Kwame Asiedu Walker, an independent candidate.

    Only four presidential aspirants were cleared by the EC to contest Election 2016.

    Dr Nduom, on October 14, 2016, filed an application for judicial review praying the High Court to quash the EC’s decision to disqualify him from contesting in the December 7, 2016 presidential election.Other aspirants, including Nana Konadu, have indicated their intention to sue the EC.

    Source: Graphic Online

  • Election 2016 will be best ever – EC boss

    The chairperson of the Electoral Commission, Mrs. Charlotte Osei, has promised Ghana will record “one of the best elections ever” under her watch come December 7, 2016.

    “With all the reforms that we have rolled out this year, we are certain as a commission that Ghana is going to have one of the best elections ever with higher levels of transparency, inclusiveness, and credibility and so we thank you and we look forward to working with you,” Mrs Osei said during the signing ceremony of an MoU with a delegation from the European Union on Tuesday.

    The boss of the Electoral Management Body is optimistic the results of the general elections will be accepted by all, adding observer teams from various bodies will help make the poll credible.

    “We welcome the work of the observer team and indeed we have had previous engagements in the past few months with the pre-assessment team that came earlier. We believe that this team, like the previous one, will help us in improving the quality of our elections and strengthen the integrity of our system.

    “We will also be welcoming an observer team from the United States of America, Canada, EFID, the Electoral Institute for Sustainable Development in Africa, the African Union, and the ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) team,” Mrs. Osei added.

    She stated: “We are very much looking forward to working with the teams and the very many applications we have received from domestic observer teams as well. For the domestic observer team, the Commission will still be coming out with guidelines for accreditation for that process and also a manual to guide the work of the domestic observer team.

    “So, I am very happy that the EU has taken the step to sign a Memorandum of Understanding agreement with us, formally recognising the rights and obligations of both parties and we thank you for the support you have given to the elections so far, and which you continue to give to Ghana as a whole, and we look forward to working with you and with the team. We are very certain that the work of the observer mission will strengthen the integrity and the outcome and the acceptability of this year’s elections.

    “With all the reforms that we have rolled out this year, we are certain as a commission that Ghana is going to have one of the best elections ever with higher levels of transparency, inclusiveness, and credibility and so we thank you and we look forward to working with you.”

    Ghana’s presidential election is a contest between four individuals – President John Mahama (NDC), Nana Akufo-Addo (NPP, Ivor Greenstreet (CPP) and Jacob Osei Yeboah (Independent). The 2016 polls will be the seventh under the Fourth Republic.


    Source: Ghana/starrfmonline.com/103.5FM

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