STATEMENT: Restore Faith In Electoral Process � Tema Residents Tell Supreme Court

Concerned residents of the Tema Metropolis have called on justices at the Supreme Court to promptly and justly deliver a fair verdict on the NPP�s writ filed challenging the validity of the declaration of the Electoral Commission on the outcome of the December 7th Presidential Elections. In a statement released by the Group, it called on the Supreme Court and the Judiciary in general to set a clear and good example to future generations and the wider African continent that electoral disputes particularly emanating from fraud and a twisting of the people�s mandate could be solved and possibly overturned using the right legal mechanisms and that one ought not resort to violence and acts of instability to achieve such goals. The statement noted that the whole essence of Democracy was to put the power of deciding the path a country follows into the hands of the people of the country. It further stated that this has necessitated the need for general elections so that all citizens duly qualified can express their will and choice and that the only role the administrators of the process, in this case the Electoral Commission, have is to ensure that they oversee the process fairly and most importantly ensure that the expressed will of the people is what is declared. The group in the statement indicated that any conspiracy or collusion by the administrators of the process and whosoever concerned to alter this expressed mandate of the people if allowed to persist and if not remedied would only mean that the whole electoral process is no longer necessary. Referring to the specific case at hand, the group mentioned that Ghana�s Electoral Commissioner, Dr. Kwadwo Afari-Djan is only a referee whose responsibility it is to ensure that a true reflection of the mandate expressed is declared and that it would be wrong for him to arrogate unto himself the power of appointing who Ghana�s President is as that power belongs to the 24million Ghanaians and not a single individual. The statement noted that while the laws of Ghana give the Electoral Commission the mandate to organize Elections and declare winners who are properly elected, the same laws of the Republic also give the courts the right to undo wrongs that arise in the electoral process and ensure that the right people according to the laws of Ghana and the expressed will of the people take office. The Concerned residents therefore urged the Supreme Court Justices to ensure that this sacred responsibility is embraced fully without fear or favor. The Group also prayed the courts to as much as possible try to ensure that a substantive verdict is given on this grave matter in the shortest possible time as that would ensure that the lingering tensions on the outcome of the verdict becomes short lived and to ensure that the nation progresses on a steady path of development in unison under a government everyone can be satisfied was properly elected. The group prayed the Supreme Court to be bold and courageous in the face of likely intimidation and arm twisting tactics and to ensure that the declaration to be made on the NPP�s case ultimately restores faith into Ghana�s democratic and especially its electoral system and judicial system.