Bawumia Hot Over Bloated Pink Sheets

By Nana Kow Blankson

I have watched Mr Tsatsu Tsikata’s cool and collected way of cross-examining the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) star witness, Dr Mahamadu Bawumia in the Supreme Court contest over the 2012 Election. Many people especially the NPP supporters who are alien to his style of cross-examination have condemned him, but to some of us, he is just trying not to leave any stone unturned to get to the truth of the matter, hence that methodological approach.

And so when he made the move on Thursday May 9, 2013 by asking Dr Bawumia some piercing questions on the amount of pink results sheets that the NPP filed with their affidavits, I immediately sensed that he was up to something.

It, therefore, did not come as a surprise when Mr Tsikata called for the recount of the pink results sheets submitted by the NPP, since according to him the number fall short of what the NPP is claiming. Mr Tsikata repeatedly asked the Supreme Court (SC) justices to order a physical recount of the pink sheet exhibits which were sworn in affidavits and presented by the three petitioners of the case.

Mr Tsikata received a huge backing from the lawyers representing the Electoral Commission and President Mahama, the first and second respondents respectively to the case. They were also of the view that they will be short-changed if the recount is not done considering the fact that the NPP is saying they presented affidavits on 11,842 pink sheets.

After a marathon recess, the justices came back and ordered a recount much to the satisfaction of the respondents but to the dismay of the petitioners who felt very uneasy about the whole show. Whilst the respondents were jubilating quietly, you could tell by the sullen faces of the NPP supporters who were in court that they fear for the worse.

The justices in their ruling ordered the KPMG accounting firm to recount the pink results sheet with each party free to bring two observers to witness the counting. This pink sheet recount has serious implications.

According to a lawyer friend of mine, if the recount proves what the respondents are saying, that the total number fall short of 11,842, it could be a huge problem for the NPP. It immediately, sets the stage that the justices and all the respondents have been lied to by the petitioners. It also puts the credibility of the NPP star witness, Dr Bawumia into serious doubt because he has repeatedly told the court that the pink sheets total 11,842.

The implication is that the respondents could then call for the case to be thrown out on technicalities by the justices. This is the worst fear that has engulfed the entire NPP legal team because the possibility of the case being thrown away by the justices is stark clear.

I believe the NPP will be praying fervently that the recount will confirm their numbers; otherwise they may have to start thinking about the 2016 Election.

nkowblankson@yahoo.com