Election 2012 Supreme Court Petition Verdict

Ghana’s Supreme Court dismissed the case brought before it seeking annulment of over 3 million votes of the 2012 Presidential election. The New Patriotic Party (NPP) led by Nana Akufo Addo asked the court to annul those votes citing irregularities and violations of electoral rules in the following six areas.

1. Over-voting
2. Voting without bio-metric verification
3. Absence of presiding officer’s signature
4. Duplicate serial numbers on pink sheets
5. Duplicate polling station codes
6. Unknown polling stations

Here is part of the judgement the presiding judge Atuguba JSC read:

• Atuguba, Adinyira, Baffoe-Bonnie, Gbadegbe and Akoto-Bamfo JJSC dismiss the claim of over-voting.
• Atuguba, Adinyira, Baffoe-Bonnie, Gbadegbe and Akoto-Bamfo JJSC dismiss the claim relating to the absence of presiding officer’s signature.
• Atuguba, Adinyira, Dotse, Gbadegbe and Akoto-Bamfo JJSC dismiss the claim relating to voting without bio-metric verification.
• Ansah, Owusu and Anin-Yeboah JJSC grant all the three claims; that is to say: over-voting, absence of presiding officers’ signature and voting without bio-metric verification, annul the votes involved and order a re-run of the affected areas.
• Dotse JSC grants the claim of over-voting but has provided a road-map in his judgement as to the figures of votes to be ascertained and cancelled and a re-run of the areas affected.
• Dotse JSC upholds the claim relating to absence of presiding officers’ signatures on the pink sheets, cancels the results concerned, and orders a re-run of the areas affected.
• Baffoe-Bonnie JSC grants the claim of voting without bio-metric verification, cancels the votes involved and orders a re-run of the areas affected.

“In the circumstance, the overall effect is that the 1st Respondent was validly-elected and the petition is therefore dismissed.” Atuguba JSC, presiding justice, concluded.

Here is a summary of the verdict:

• Over-voting (Dismissed by 5-4 majority: Anin-Yeboah, Ansah, Dotse and Owusu JJSC dissenting)
• Voting without bio-metric verification (Dismissed by 5-4 majority: Anin-Yeboah, Ansah, Baffoe-Bonnie and Owusu JJSC dissenting)
• Absence of a presiding officer’s signature (Dismissed by 5-4 majority: Anin-Yeboah, Dotse, Ansah, Dotse and Owusu JJSC dissenting)
• Duplicate serial numbers on pink sheets (unanimously dismissed by all 9 Justices)
• Duplicate polling station codes (unanimously dismissed by all 9 Justices)
• Unknown polling stations (unanimously dismissed by all 9 Justices)

Nana Akufo-Addo gave a press conference shortly after the verdict was declared saying “…whilst I disagree with the court’s decision, I accept it. I accept that what the court says brings finality to the election dispute. We shall not be asking for a review of the verdict so we can all move on in the interest of our nation”

He agreed with one of the Supreme Court judges who said that “…after this case elections in Ghana will not be the same.”