The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has secured an order of substituted service from the Supreme Court to serve respondents in the re-collated Parliamentary results in Tema Central, Ablekuma North, Okaikwei Central, and Techiman South constituencies.
The party, through its candidates – Baba Sadiq, Okaikwe Central; Ewurabena Aubynn, Ablekuma North; Ebi Bright, Tema Central and Christopher Beyere, Techiman South, are before the Apex Court case seeking to quash the decision of a High Court in Accra which ordered the Electoral Commission to complete the collation of Parliamentary results in the four constituencies.
In an affidavit in support of a motion for substituted service, the NDC Parliamentary candidates aver that since the filing of the certiorari application, attempts to serve the said application on interested parties – Partick Yaw Boamah, Nana Akua Owusu Afriyie, Charles Forson, and Martin Kweku Adjei Mensah Korsah have proved futile thereby delaying the hearing of the instant application.
Attached to the application are copies of affidavits of non-service showing that more than three attempts have been made in effecting personal service of the certiorari application, a supplementary affidavit in support of the certiorari application, and the hearing notice on the named Interested Parties.
The applicants claim they are finding it difficult to serve the respondents, especially when they did not attach an address to the suit they filed at the High Court which resulted in the re-collation of results in three out of the four constituencies.
“More than three unsuccessful attempts have been made to effect personal service of the certiorari application, and the supplementary affidavit in support of the certiorari application and the 2nd to 5th Interested Parties,” the motion avers.
It also states that any further attempt to serve the interested parties with another hearing notice for the hearing of the Certiorari application may be practically impossible due to the experiences gathered from the service of the hearing notice for the January 23, 2025, hearing.
“That any further attempt to effect personal service on the named Interested Parties would cause further delay in the hearing of the certiorari application especially taking into account the public interest in the matter,” the applicants added.
They, therefore, prayed to the court for an order of substituted service on the respondents which was granted by the court presided over by a single judge, Justice Anthony Henry Kwofie.
The applicants are to effect the substituted service by posting copies of the certiorari application, the supplementary affidavit in support of the certiorari application, and the hearing notice on the notice board of the Supreme Court.
They are also to post the certiorari application, the supplementary affidavit in support of the certiorari application, and the hearing notice at the residential addresses of the respondents.
Again, the applicants are to serve copies of the certiorari application, the supplementary affidavit in support of the certiorari application, and the hearing notice, specifically about Partick Yaw Boamah, Nana Akua Owusu Afriyie, Charles Forson, and Martin Korsah, on the legal department of the Office of Parliament.
They were also granted leave to serve the processes via the WhatsApp contacts of Nana Akua Owusu Afriyie, Charles Forson, and Martin Korsah.
The notices are to be posted for 14 days.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak