The Supreme Court has thrown out another application filed by the petitioner in the 2020 presidential election petition hearing.
Mr. Mahama, had through his lead counsel, lawyer Tsatsu Tsikata, filed an application for the Supreme Court to review its February 11, 2021 decision that cannot compel the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC), Jean Mensa, to testify in the ongoing election petition.
The Court made its decision on February 11 after the lawyers for the first respondent which is the Electoral Commission, and the second respondent, President Nana Akufo-Addo, elected not to adduce evidence in the ongoing trial.
In its ruling on February 11, the Supreme Court indicated that it was a settled principle of law that a court cannot compel a party to adduce evidence in a trial.
However, Mr Mahama’s lawyers filed a motion for review of that ruling. In the motion, the lawyers indicated that the court had erred in its ruling which occasioned a miscarriage of justice to the petitioner.
Moving the motion on Thursday, February 18, 2021, Mr Tsikata reminded the court that Mrs Mensa had sworn to an affidavit in opposition to application for interrogatories that the answers sought can be solicited through cross examination.
According to him, that representation by Mrs Mensa had estoppel her from refusing to give evidence as she had pointed out her availability to be cross-examined per Section 26 of the Evidence Act.
But the lawyers of the first and second respondents opposed the application, arguing that the court’s ruling did not occasion any miscarriage of justice on the petitioner.
After arguments from the Petitioner lawyers and the respondents lawyers, the seven member panel of the Supreme Court presided over by Chief Justice Kwasi Anin Yeboah held that the application did not properly invoke its review jurisdiction.
According to the judges, they were not convinced by the application.
Hearing was subsequently adjourned till Monday, February 22, 2021.
Meanwhile, addressing a press conference after the Thursday’s ruling by the Court, the Director of Communications of the NDC, Sammy Gyamfi, urged supporters of the party to be hopeful.
According to him, although the various rulings of the court has not gone their way, they were positive that at the end of the day, the truth will come out.
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