2020 Election Petition: CI 99 Is 'Sick' And 'Unconstitutional' - Baba Jamal
The Deputy Director of Legal Affairs for the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), Baba Jamal has described as unconstitutional, the Constitutional Instrument (CI) 99.
According to him, the Constitutional Instrument (CI) 99 which was introduced after the 2013 judgment of the Supreme Court on the 2012 election petition makes it difficult for any citizen other than a Presidential Candidate to petition the Supreme Court on Presidential Elections.
Speaking on Okay FM’s 'Ade Akye Abia' Morning Show, the former Deputy General Secretary of the NDC explained that the CI99 cannot be bigger than the 1992 Constitution that allows any citizen to petition the Supreme Court on Presidential Elections in the country.
He added that it was due to the mistake of the CI99 that is why only the Presidential Candidate of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), former President John Dramani Mahama petitioned the Supreme Court on the 2020 Presidential Election.
“The Article 64(1) of the 1992 Constitution says that any Ghanaian citizen can petition the Supreme Court to challenge the Presidential Election results but due to our experience in the 2013 election petition, CI99 was introduced to limit the Presidential Election petitioners to only those who contested in the presidential election,” he posited.
"The CI99 is sick and unconstitutional and we will talk about it in the future because you should not implement any new law which is contrary to the 1992 Constitution. So, if the 1992 Constitution says any Ghanaian can challenge the presidential election results, the CI99 should not limit it to only those who contested in the presidential election,” he argued.
He stressed that the persistent quest of the lawyer of the petitioner to demand certain answers from the Chairperson of the 1st Respondent in the 2020 election petition, Mrs. Jean Adukwei Mensa is to satisfy the constitutional mandate given to the EC to declare the Presidential Election results.
He reiterated that the petitioner has reasons to conclude that the constitutional requirement of the 1st Respondent was not met as the 2nd Respondent in the calculation of the petitioner did not cross the threshold of 50 percent to become the President of Ghana.
He was of the view that Mrs. Jean Mensa as the Chairperson of the 1st Respondent and also the Returning Officer of the Presidential Election should be made to answer certain questions with regards to the anomaly found in the Presidential Election as captured in the petition of John Dramani Mahama.
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