Supreme Court to hear EC’s case October 15
The Supreme Court (SC) has fixed October 15 to commence hearing into the case in which a businessman is challenging the authority of the Electoral Commission (EC) to create 45 new constituencies.
This was after the Court had granted leave to all parties in the matter to file their various amendments including the writ of summons, statements of case and two other reliefs being sought by them.
Mr Joe Ghartey was counsel for Mr Ransford Frances while Mr Sylvester Williams represented the Attorney General. Mr James Quarshie-Idun represented the EC.
Meanwhile two lawyers, Mr David Annan and Dr Dominic Ayine who acted as friends of the court have filed their respective applications.
The court presided over by Mr Justice William Atuguba had other Justices on the panel to include Ms Rose Owusu, Ms Sophia Adinyira, Professor Dateh Baah, Mr Anin Yeboah, Mrs Vida Akoto Bamfo and Mr Sule Gbadegbe.
Mr Ransford Frances and his lawyers are praying the Supreme Court to declare the C.I. 78 as unconstitutional and therefore null and void.
This was after the court had dismissed a writ for an interlocutory injunction filed by lawyers of the plaintiff seeking to prevent Parliament from passing the C.I. 78 that was intended to give legal backing to the creation of the 45 new constituencies.
The businessman was challenging the power of the EC to go ahead with the creation of new constituencies without first laying it before Parliament, a Constitutional Instrument indicating clearly the mechanism, formula or modalities by which it intended to undertake that exercise.
On July 16 this year, the plaintiff proceeded to the SC praying it to perpetually restrain the EC from laying before Parliament any Constitutional Instrument creating new constituencies and or revoking the Representation of the People (Parliamentary Constituencies) Instrument, 2004 [C.I. 46], until it lays before Parliament a Constitutional Instrument which clearly sets out the processes to be adopted by the EC.
Source: GNA