The High Court in Tema recently ruled on an application leveled against the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC), Jean Mensa, as well as her two deputies, regarding alleged contempt of court related to the limited voter registration exercise. The applicant, Precious Ayitah, sought to have the High Court hold the aforementioned officials in contempt for proceeding with the limited registration exercise in the district offices of the EC, despite an injunction application she had filed to halt the process.
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Ruling
Presiding over the case, Justice Patricia Quansah dismissed the contempt application last Friday, citing its lack of substance, and awarded a nominal cost of GH¢2,000 against the applicant. The judge explained that the applicant had failed to establish a compelling case against the respondents and was also unable to prove that the respondents were personally served with the court order. The court further noted that the applicant's claim of serving the application on a designated Legal Secretary at the EC's Head office could not be substantiated. The EC, in response, contended that there was no position such as Legal Secretary and no person by the name of Daniel Addai Nyamekye was employed by the EC. The court concurred with the EC, asserting that any doubt should favor the respondents, and hence, the applicant had failed to demonstrate that the three commissioners were duly served, rendering the application baseless.
The court articulated that the evidence presented by the applicant was not sufficiently robust to warrant the conclusion that the respondents had committed contempt.
Appeal
Following the High Court ruling, the dissatisfied applicant lodged an appeal at the Court of Appeal in a bid to overturn the decision, as confirmed by the applicant's lawyer, Nii Kpakpo Samoa Addo.
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Background
The applicant, residing near Afienya in the Greater Accra Region, had initiated the contempt suit against the EC officials, arguing that her initial interlocutory injunction application served on the respondents was disregarded, resulting in the limited registration exercise proceeding in the district offices of the EC. Ms. Ayitah contended that this defiance of the injunction application and the subsequent limited registration exercise jeopardized the outcome of the initial application and substantive suit, hence implicating contempt of court.
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