Bolga High Court hears case on Bawku election
results
Bolga High Court hears case on Bawku
election results
Bolgatanga (Northern Region) 04 January 2001
A Bolgatanga High Court on Tuesday began hearing the case in which Hajia Fati Seidu, Member of Parliament for Bawku Central, has filed a writ restraining the Electoral Commission (EC) from declaring Madam Hawa Yakubu, as MP-elect for the constituency in the December 7, 2000 election.
Hajia Fati was represented in court by Mr. James Ben Kaba, a Bolgatanga-based legal practitioner, whilst Mr. Emilio Musah represented the EC.
A High Court judge, Mr. Justice Gilbert Mensah Quaye, who presided over the case, granted leave to counsel for Hajia Fati to withdraw his client's application for an interim injunction.
Mr Justice Quaye further granted both Mr. Kaba and Mr. Musah 48 hours within which to file or exchange affidavits and exhibit documents for a substantive petition on the case at hand for hearing on January 5, 2001.
The granting of the grace period followed a decision by the two parties involved that they both needed enough time to study the petition so as to counsel their clients appropriately.
Mr. Kaba remarked that the two parties had earlier met to discuss how best they could help the court to handle proceedings efficiently, adding that they had come to the agreement that all the 151 ballot boxes for the Bawku Central constituency, especially the four boxes that were brought in later, should be thoroughly scrutinised.
He argued that Section 21 of PNDC Law 282 of 1992 mandates the High Court to order a proper recount of all the ballots, and prayed the court to handle the case swiftly.
It would be recalled that Hajia Fati Seidu filed a petition on December 15 at a Bolgatanga High Court restraining Madam Hawa Yakubu, MP-elect for the Bawku Central Constituency, from holding herself as MP for the constituency. She contended that the electoral process had been flawed.
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