The Supreme Court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Editor-in-Chief of the New Crusading Guide newspaper, Mr Abdul Malik Kweku Baako challenging the removal of former Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC), Charlotte Osei, from office.
The justices of the apex court in their decision held that Mr. Baako failed to raise any concrete constitutional issue and also failed to evoke their original jurisdiction.
One of the justices on the panel, Justice Sulley Gbadegbe, while addressing the issue of procurement, said not every issue is redressable by the Supreme Court and that the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court is narrow.
[contextly_sidebar id=”bmZXccBFdsZdwfQe0qQ27sh3fHUZAG2V”]President Nana Akufo-Addo removed Charlotte Osei and her two deputies, Amadu Sulley and Georgina Opoku Amankwaa from office on June 28, 2018, upon the recommendation of a committee set up by the Chief Justice, Justice Sophia Akuffo, pursuant to Article 146(4) of the Constitution, to investigate separate complaints brought by some Ghanaian citizens against the three officials.
Excerpts of the Committee’s report said it investigated six separate allegations of various procurement breaches, for which a prima facie case was established against Madam Charlotte Osei.
“All the six allegations leveled against Madam Charlotte Osei for which a prima facie case was established by the Honourable Chief Justice, relates to breaches to the Public Procurement Act, Act 663, as amended by the Public Procurement (Amendment) Act, Act 914” the committee’s report stated.
Kwaku Baako in his suit prayed the Supreme Court to declare that the Chief Justice’s prima facie determination against Mrs. Osei was inconsistent and in violation of Article 146 (3) of the 1992 Constitution.
The 18 reliefs sought by Mr Baako also included a declaration that upon a true and proper construction of Article 146 (1) of the 1992 Constitution, a petition for the removal of the Chairperson of the EC, pursuant to the provisions of Article 146, was only valid if such a petition alleged stated misbehaviour or incompetence relating to the performance of the core constitutional functions of the Chairperson of the EC.
He further sought a declaration that the finding by the Chief Justice that a prima facie case had been made out in respect of six allegations contained in the petition for the removal of Mrs. Osei pursuant to Article 146 of the Constitution and which allegations were not founded on acts of stated misbehaviour or incompetence against Mrs. Osei in the performance of her core functions as Chairperson of the EC was unconstitutional, null, void and of no effect.
According to Baako, the same act was inconsistent with and in violation of the provisions of Article 296 Clause (c) of the 1992 Constitution and accordingly arbitrary and unconstitutional.
The suit also urged the Supreme Court to rule that the Chief Justice exercised an administrative rather than the functions and duties of a judge or judicial officer.
Another relief sought was a declaration that in exercising the constitutional functions and duties of a committee constituted by the Chief Justice under Article 146 (4) of the 1992 Constitution, the committee so established exercised an administrative rather than the functions and duties of a judge or judicial officer and that the committee was required to act in accordance with regulations governing the exercise of its discretionary power under Article 146 (4) of the 1992 Constitution.
Jean Mensa replaces Charlotte Osei
Following the removal of Charlotte Osei, President Akufo-Addo on July 23, 2018, appointed the Executive Director of the Institute of Economic Affairs, (IEA) Jean Adukwei Mensa as the new Chairperson of the EC.
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By: Fred Djabanor | citinewsroom.com | Ghana
