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NDC amends voters’ register argument as court sets 23 June for judgment

The National Democratic Congress withdraws its request asking the Supreme Court to rule that the Electoral Commission does not have the power to compile a new voters’ register

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has withdrawn its request asking the Supreme Court to rule that the Electoral Commission does not have the power to compile a new voters’ register.

This was after the court had asked the party to make a choice between which of its reliefs it wants to pursue.

While counsel for the NDC, Godwin Edudzi Tamakloe, had wanted to confer with the party, the panel reminded him that, as a lawyer in the case, he can decide what question the court answers.

He opted to withdraw the request seeking to bar the EC from compiling a new register and instead pursue the exclusion of the voter’s ID card as proof of identity.

The court then asked the lawyers to address it orally.

The NDC contends that the EC cannot exclude the existing voter’s ID card as proof to enable Ghanaians to register in the exercise scheduled to begin on 30 June. The court struck out that relief as withdrawn, urging Tamakloe to address it orally.

Tamakloe told the court that the processes filed by the EC do not produce any evidence to support its claims that individuals who do not deserve to hold the current cards are on the electoral roll.

The Commission, in its legal arguments,  described the card as the fruit of a “poisoned tree”. It therefore says excluding the existing card will give the Commission an opportunity to “break from the past and remedy all the carried-on ineligibilities”.

On 4 June the Supreme Court gave the EC up until 8 June to justify its stance. The Commission has complied with this demand, raising six legal points in its attempt to get the court to agree with its position.

The EC’s arguments

The Commission says the existing voters’ register, which was compiled in 2012 and has been revised since in limited exercises, has been held by the apex court as not reasonably credible.

The EC makes references to the cases of Abu Ramadan and Another v the Electoral Commission and another and Kwasi Danso Acheampong v the Electoral Commission and other.

It argues that the two cases raised questions about the existing voters’ register, one judgment holding that using the National Health Insurance Scheme card to get on to the register was contrary to law.

The Commission says this means that “the credibility of the register compiled pursuant to CI remains in doubt, save the registrations done with the voter identification cards before the coming into effect of CI 72”.

Deputy AG speaks

Deputy Attorney General Godfred Yeboah Dame has urged the Supreme Court not to impede the EC’s quest to obey the law.

He said the EC has admitted to training its officers not to obey a constitutional instrument and that was enough evidence to support the view that the current card cannot be used for the registration exercise.

The court adjourned proceedings to 23 June to deliver judgment.

Via
myjoyonline
Source
Joseph Ackah-Blay
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