Nana Agyenim Boateng
An attempt to stop the Electoral Commission (EC) from holding of the December 7 presidential election has been thrown out by a High Court in Accra.
The action was instituted by Nana Agyenim Boateng, aka Gyataba, of the United Freedom Party (UFP), who was a presidential aspirant disqualified by the EC from the contest.
Gyataba wanted the court to place an interlocutory injunction on the conduct of the presidential election following his disqualification by the EC but the court rejected it yesterday.
He wanted reliefs including reversal of the EC’s decision disqualifying him from contesting in the December 7 polls and also to quashing same and declaring it null and void.
The court, presided over by Justice Ruby Ayitey, however, bounced the application on the grounds that per the applicant’s affidavits and averments, Gyataba did not have the legal and equitable right to put the December 7 election on hold.
The court said that granting the application would lead to a breach of the constitutional deadlines of the EC and could likely jeopardize the preparation of the commission towards the conduct of the 2020 general elections.
EC Announcement
On Monday, October 19, the EC announced that it had picked 12 candidates including President Akufo-Addo and ex-President John Mahama and axed five other aspirants including Gyataba from participating in the December 7 presidential polls.
Making up the rejected five, apart from Gyataba, were two independent presidential nominees – Kofi Koranteng and Marricke Kofi Gane, and two political party-sponsored nominees – Akwasi Addae Odike of the United Progressive Party (UPP) and Kwasi Busumbru of the People’s Action Party (PAP).
The 12 cleared included Alfred Kwame Asiedu Walker – Independent candidate, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo – NPP, Christian Kwabena Andrews, aka Osofo Kyiri Abosom – GUM, Brigitte Akosua Dzogbenuku – PPP and John Dramani Mahama – NDC.
Others are Akua Donkor – GFP, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings – NDP, Hassan Ayariga – APC, Ivor Kobina Greenstreet – CPP and Henry Herbert Lartey – GCPP.
The rest are Percival Kofi Akpaloo – LPG and David Asibi Ayindenaba Apasera – PNC.
EC Chairperson Mrs. Jean Mensa announcing the decision during the periodic engagement with the media, ‘Let the People Know’ series, at the commission’s headquarters in Accra, said the commission even reported the disqualified candidates to the police CID for falsification of documents.
By Gibril Abdul Razak