Election petition pre-hearing begins today

• Posted on January 19, 2021January 19, 2021
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

The Supreme Court will later this morning, Tuesday, January 19, 2021, conduct a pre-trial conference for parties in the 2020 election petition case.

The pre-trial conference is to assist the court and parties organize the proceedings in a manner that will be convenient and expeditious and also set down the issues for the trial.

Parties at this stage may also agree or disagree on the issues for the trial and are expected to make available to each other all documents and evidence they hope to rely on in the trial.

The parties will also be required to provide a list of witnesses they will call when the trial starts. Today’s sitting will hopefully see the court set dates and give directions about the trial.

The petitioner in the election petition case, John Dramani Mahama is requesting the Electoral Commission to admit to what he says are facts for the purposes of the trial.

Processes were filed at the Supreme Court on Monday requesting the EC to within 3 days, admit that the Chairperson, Jean Mensa, made only one declaration of the presidential election results on December 9, 2020; in which she stated the total valid votes cast as 13.4 million, and has thereafter not made any other declaration of the presidential results.

Mr. Mahama says in his filed processes that the admission to these facts will form the basis of his evidence in the election petition.

-Citi