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Opinions of Thursday, 23 May 2013

Columnist: Adofo, Rockson

Nana Akufo & Co will Surely Emerge victorious

Nana Akufo & Co (Petitioners) will Surely Emerge VICTORIOUS, trust me

I had decided not to reveal the outcome of my consultations with my White legal brains ahead of the Supreme Court completing the hearing, writing and declaring their verdict on Election 2012 petition pending before them. However, the obnoxiously slow tactics cunningly employed by the respondents' counsels, especially, Tsatsu Tsikata, the counsel for the 3rd respondent (NDC), to delay the case, has compelled me to come out with what these independent lawyers think. They have meticulously pieced together the jigsaw to then unravel the puzzle. ? Prior to making known their views, I would like to stress that any concomitant praise and glory anyone may want to offer should all be directed to GOD. It is by the strength of God, His wisdom, His protection, and His Revelations to Kofi Basoah that the "legal brains" and I have come this far. While the lawyers in this case are basing their arguments on hard evidence before the court as well as connoted (circumstantial) evidence, mine is additionally based on the revelation in a dream to Kofi Basoah of Asante-Juaben. ? From the lawyers: 1. The petitioners have presented to Court overwhelming evidence of irregularities, malpractices, omissions and commissions that occurred during presidential Election 2012

2. The evidences are in hardcopies and supported by softcopy - CD-ROM

3. The evidences are intended to prove the occurrences of over-votes, under-votes, voting without going through biometric verification, unsigned Statement of Poll and Declarations form (Pink sheets) and same repeated pink sheet serial numbers used in different polling stations and bearing different results

4. The petitioners have placed on the internet all the names of polling stations where the alleged irregularities took place; indicating the type(s) of irregularities that occurred at any single polling station among the lot

5. Copies of the evidences were served on the Supreme Court and each of the three respondents (President John Mahama, the Electoral Commission and the NDC)

6. The petitioners (Nana Akufo Addo, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and Jake Otanka Obetsebi-Lamptey) complied with the five-day ultimatum to file their evidences in several copy sets with the Supreme Court.

7. The respondents (President John Mahama, the Electoral Commission and the NDC) could not comply fully with a similar demand to file their proofs, (witness statements with affidavits attached) due to reasons only best known to them

8. The respondents' counsels have not been able to challenge the allegations of violations by bringing up questions on them during the entire several days that the principal witness and 2nd petitioner (Dr Bawumia) has mounted the witness box. They have needlessly been infatuated with proving, though in vain, that the evidential pink sheets have been bloated through duplications, triplications and quadruplicating by the petitioners to fool the court. Does the duplication or not, of the pink sheets remove or nullify an existing irregularity?

9. The near perpetual fondness by the counsel for the 3rd respondent (Tsatsu Tsikata) to keep asking same question in different shapes and forms without moving forward, with intent to stall the case does not show seriousness on his part.

10. The respondents have not been able to show or confirm how many pink sheets have suffered various duplications and how many are not

On the Circumstantial evidence: A. A person (Salamatu) who works for the Electoral Commission was caught in Savelugu in the Northern region arranging to have unsigned pink sheets signed. According to investigations conducted by the police, she was instructed by her superior boss with strong connections to the NDC to do that. Fifteen copies of unsigned pink sheets were found in her house.

B. A Presiding Officer in Gambaga in the Northern region reported to the police how the Electoral Commission had arranged to have him sign an affidavit attesting that he, the Presiding Officer, on his own volition and initiative annulled a polling station results when there was an over-vote. Contrarily, he acted on the instructions of the Electoral Commission hence, his refusal to sign the false affidavit on the grounds that it was against his conscience and religion to lie.

C. The NPP headquarters was broken into by some unknown but supposed policemen acting on a tip off that the NPP have stockpiled weapons at their Head office. The unknown persons made away with computers and laptops containing information relating to NPP and the Election 2012.

D. Gloria Akuffo's (member of petitioners' counsel) office has twice been broken into and the assailants made away with laptops, desk top computers (PCs), backup USB sticks and other materials

E. An Electoral Commission office within the District headquarters office block at Asuogyaman in Atimpoku in the Eastern region has been raided with a laptop and a pen drive (USB stick) containing 2012 voter registration information stolen.

F. Four biometric verification machines have been stolen from Amenfi East Constituency's electoral collation centre. Irregularities took place in that constituency with the defeated NPP parliamentary candidate having already lodged a complaint with a local court.

G. Thieves broke into the New Patriotic Party (NPP) office in the Efigya Kwabre South constituency in the Ashanti region and made away with some pink sheets and other documents relating to Election 2012.

Consequently, the inability so far by the respondents to seriously challenge the allegations of irregularities as informed the court, but to mischievously lackadaisically dwell on the fringes, pinning their hopes on the super duplication of pink sheets that they have not even been able to prove beyond reasonable doubt, the respondents have very weak defence. They have by their actions as evidently seen in court, proved that statutory violations able to impact the election results to the disadvantage of the petitioners did take place in Election 2012. They are only interested to see the case dragged on to ensure President Mahama spends a four-year term in office albeit duplicities.

The above listed irregularities that the petitioners are praying the Court to look into do immensely constitute statutory violations according as stated in the Constitutional Instrument (CI74) used for the conduction of the elections. The Constitutional Instrument was supported by the 1992 Constitution that the country upholds and uses.

From the above, it is concluded with certainty that the petitioners will WIN the case. The little, but which has got greatest determinant effect that I will personally add to the views expressed by the White lawyers is, GOD has already declared the verdict through Kofi Basoah and others provided the NPP and all discerning Ghanaians will remain RESOLUTE in pursuance of Justice for Ghanaians.