The Supreme Court will be the venue for a fierce legal tussle between EC’s lawyer, Thaddeus Sory and PPP’s lawyer Ayikoi Otoo, as it hears a suit challenging a High Court decision to overturn the disqualification of Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom.
The EC says after a careful study of the contents of the High Court ruling directing that the Progressive People’s Party flagbearer to be allowed to contest in the presidential polls, it disagrees with the “judge’s decision on several essential legal and public policy grounds.”
The EC, therefore, filed an application at the Supreme Court to quash the High Court decision and seek clarity on the relevant aspects of the law on candidate nominations – a move that has been criticised as capable of delaying the December 7 general elections.
The EC is expected to argue that some form of criminality was sighted on Dr Nduom’s nomination forms in the form of falsified signatures and hence its decision to reject his bid to contest the presidential elections was justified.
The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments from the two lawyers after which a date will be set for the ruling.
The EC disqualified Dr. Nduom from contesting the presidential elections holding that the number of subscribers to his forms did not meet the requirements of Regulation 7 (2) (b) of CI 94.
The EC says one of his subscribers endorsed the form with different signatures in both portions of the nomination form, raising questions as to the legitimacy of one or both signatures. But lawyers of the PPP argued that the EC did not give them the opportunity to correct the errors on the nomination forms.
However, that is not the only legal battle awaiting the EC today. A High Court will on Friday also determine the fate of All People’s Congress (APC) flagbearer, Hassan Ayariga over the suit he filed challenging the EC’s decision to reject his nomination form.
Furthermore, the EC also comes up against the National Democratic Party (NDP), the People’s National Convention (PNC) and the Progressive People’s Party (PPP) whose flagbearers are also seeking to be reinstated into the presidential race.
Early this week EC lawyer, Thaddeus Sory, had a tough day representing the Commission at the different courts when the cases were called. He was fined for absenting himself at one of the courts when the PNC case was commenced. The situation is not expected to be any different today.
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