The Supreme Court, by a unanimous decision, has quashed a decision by the Ho high court granting an interim injunction to stop the Electoral Commission from gazetting the 2020 parliamentary election results for Hohoe in the Volta Region.

The five-member Supreme Court panel, presided over by Justice Yaw Appaw, held that the application by the interested parties, judging from their own submissions both at the high court in Ho and at the Supreme Court, suggests that they were seeking the enforcement of their fundamental human rights to vote in the elections organised by the EC.

However, the judges said, there is no justifiable reason why the election of the MP-elect for Hohoe, John Peter Amewu, should be a matter of contention to necessitate an interim injunction order to stop the gazetting of results.

The court ruled that if the interested parties are seeking enforcement of their fundamental human rights, their action should be directed at the Electoral Commission, and not the duly elected MP for Hohoe.

The Supreme Court also held that the high court judge erred in deciding to grant an interim injunction against the gazetting of the result of the parliamentary contest for Hohoe in the 2020 general election.

AG’s case as filed and reliefs sought

On 29 December 2020, the Attorney General filed a motion on notice at the Supreme Court, praying the court to quash the decision by the Ho high court which granted an interim injunction in an ex parte application by five individuals, seeking to stop the EC from gazetting the parliamentary results for Hohoe from the 7 December 2020 general election.

The motion, entitled “The Republic versus High Court, Ho, ex parte Attorney General (applicant), Professor Margaret Kweku, Simon Alan Opoku-Minta, John Kwame Obompeh, Godfred Koku Fofie, Felix Quarshie (interested parties)”, sought, among other things, an order of certiorari, directed at the high court in Ho with Justice George Buadi presiding, to “bring into this court for the purpose of being quashed the orders of the court dated 23 December 2020 in Suit No E12/40/2021, entitled ‘In the matter of an application under Article 33 of the Constitution 1992 and Order 67 of the High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules 2004 (CI 47) and the inherent jurisdiction of the high court between Professor Margaret Kweku, Simon Alan Opoku-Mintah, John Kwame Obompeh, Godfred Koku Fofie, Felix Quarshie and the Electoral Commission, Wisdom Kofi Akpakli, John Peter Amewu and the Attorney General’”.

The Attorney General also sought an order prohibiting the high court in Ho from hearing or conducting further proceedings in the said case.

The Attorney General’s contention is that the orders of the Ho high court dated 23 December 2020 constituted a “patent error on the face of the record, to the extent that they purported to confer on the applicants (interested parties herein), non-existent voting rights in respect of the Hohoe constituency in the Volta Region”.

Source: Asaaseradio.com

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