The Supreme Court will be resuming hearing of the presidential election petition filed by Mr John Dramanai Mahama, the Presidential Candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), today January 19.
The apex court started hearing the petition last Thursday January 14.
Mr Mahama has rejected the presidential results announced by the Electoral Commission (EC) Chair which indicated the President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo won the elections.
He petitioned the court to compel the Commission to rerun the polls.
Mr Mahama on Monday January 18 filed a motion at the Supreme Court asking the Chair of the EC Jean Mensa to admit that the electoral figures she announced were wrong.
Specifically, Mr Mahama wants the Commission’s Chair to admit among other things that the figures and percentages she announced comes to 100.3% instead of 100%.
The presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) also wants wants her to admit that the subsequent correction of results in statements issued by the EC is different from what candidates obtained as captured in the summary of results sheets published by the EC.
Meanwhile Director of Communications of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Yaw Buaben Asamoa has said that lawyers of President Akufo-Addo do not expect the Supreme Court to go into the election petition filed by the Presidential Candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama.
According to him, the lawyers believe that there is no merit in the petition hence, should not be considered at all.
Mr Buaben Asamoa told TV3 in an interview that “The lawyers of His Excellency President Akufo-Addo expect the petition to be dismissed without going into it at all because they don’t believe there is any merit in it.”
The President’s lawyers had earlier described the petition as incompetent, frivolous and vexatious and does not meet the threshold for invoking the jurisdiction of the Honorable Court and should therefore be dismissed.
A statement signed by Frank Davies, Head, Legal Directorate for the president announcing spokesperson for the legal team to tackle the case in court said “The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has through his Lawyers filed an Answer to the 2020 Presidential Elections Petition initiated by Mr. John Dramani Mahama, a candidate in that election.
“President Akufo-Addo in his Answer has provided the court with pleadings that showcase that Mr Mahama’s petition lacks material substance.
“Mr President has further invited the Supreme Court to determine that ‘the petition is incompetent, frivolous and vexatious, does not meet the threshold for invoking the jurisdiction of the Honorable Court and should therefore be dismissed,’.”
A spokesperson for the Petitioner’s legal team Abraham Amaliba told TV3 that they expect to be vindicated in court.
“I know that clearly, we will vindicate ourselves in court but those who are going to pronounce the verdict are the Supreme Court judges.
“We also have the court of public opinion who will also be looking into the matters via their television set.”
By Laud Nartey|editors.3news.com|Ghana
