Chief Justice Anin-Yeboah
The Supreme Court will today, Thursday June 25, decide on whether the existing voter ID cards will be added to the list of documents needed as proof of identification in the upcoming voters’ registration exercise, slated to begin on June 30 or not.
The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) and one Mark Tekyi-Benson, in consolidated writs, are challenging the Electoral Commission’s refusal to accept the existing voter ID Cards and birth certificates as documents for identification in the upcoming fresh registration exercise.
The NDC had earlier gone to the court challenging the EC over its refusal to accept the old voter ID cards as part of the requirements for the registration. The opposition party was at the same time challenging the powers of the EC to compile a new voters’ register.
In its suit, the NDC had argued that that the EC lacked the power to go ahead with its plans because it can “compile a register of voters’ only once, and thereafter revise it periodically, as may be determined by law.”
Later, Mark Takyi-Benson also filed a similar suit at the Supreme Court, seeking a relief to the effect that birth certificates should be accepted as requirements for the new voters’ registration exercise.
Poisonous fruits
The EC in a response had argued that the old processes leading to the acquisition of the old voter ID cards had made it become a product of “poisonous tree”, and thus it is a “poisonous fruit”. It had said the cards were obtained under three different Constitutional Instruments, CI 12, CI 72 and CI 91, which had all been deemed illegal.
Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame, a Deputy Attorney General, recalled that out of 15 million people, 12 million could not provide any form of identification before they were registered.
In its supplementary statement of case, the EC said it had placed before Parliament a Constitutional Instrument that did not include the use of the existing voter ID cards.
The court then set a new date for judgment following the hearing of submissions from various counsels in the matter.
Case dropped
The NDC had earlier dropped its case questioning the eligibility and the powers of the election management body to compile a new voters’ register.
The withdrawal of the case came after a directive from the Supreme Court to the party to make a choice on which of their two reliefs they wanted a decision on.
Counsel for the NDC, Godwin Tamakloe, given the options, while on his feet in court on Thursday, June 11, 2020, opted for a ruling on the use of the old voter ID cards, dropping the claim of the EC’s ineligibility to compile a new register.
IMANI thrown out
Meanwhile, the seven-member panel yesterday dismissed an Amicus brief filed by IMANI Ghana and other civil society organisations, saying their application to be joined to the suit was not supported by law.
The court had quizzed Mr Joe Aboagye Debrah, counsel for IMANI and the other CSOs, for waiting over three months before joining in the suit.
According to the Supreme Court, the CSOs were not being neutral in the matter. The court further argued that the reliefs being sought by the CSOs were virtually the same and wondered why counsel for the CSOs did not read them before filing an application for Amicus brief in court.
Mr Debrah argued that the CSOs were not introducing new issues in the matter, adding that they were providing some assistance to the court.
According to him, they were offering assistance to court to ensure that majority of citizens are not disenfranchised during the December 7 presidential and parliamentary elections.
Mr Debrah admitted that he had not read the suits and the reliefs being sought, adding that he had only gone through the affidavit.
Source: Daily Statesman
