An Accra High Court on Monday, November 30, 2020, dismissed a suit filed by independent presidential hopeful, Marricke Kofi Gane challenging his disqualification from the 2020 polls by the Electoral Commission (EC).

Mr. Gane, an independent presidential aspirant was disqualified by the EC for allegedly forging signatures of persons who endorsed his nomination forms.

Mr. Gane had prayed the court to quash the Electoral Commission’s decision on the basis that his right to natural justice was breached when the EC failed to provide an opportunity for him to rectify alleged errors on his forms.

The Criminal Court 2 Division of the High Court presided over by Her Ladyship, Elfreda Amy Dankyi however noted that the EC did no wrong since the errors constituted a case of fraud and that puts Mr. Gane in a position where he lacked any rights to be protected.

Her ladyship Elfreda Denkyi further ruled that the reliefs being sought by Mr. Gane could not also be accepted because he filed the suit ten days after the disqualification was announced.

The judge explained that the delay in filing the suit has tilted the balance of convenience towards the EC and that granting the reliefs will mean the EC may breach the constitutional provision of holding elections on December 7 which is seven days away.

Kofi Koranteng’s disqualification case against EC dismissed

The High Court in a similar manner dismissed independent candidate, Kofi Koranteng’s claims against the Electoral Commission.

Mr. Koranteng went to court to challenge the Electoral Commission’s decision to disqualify him from the 2020 presidential poll.

He had told the court that the Commission gave him a window of opportunity to re-submit the defective portions of his nomination forms; which he took and re-submitted on October 14, 2020.

He, therefore, expected that the Commission would have given him a fair and reasonable treatment as mandated by article 23 of the 1992 Constitution.

The court, presided over by Her Ladyship Gifty Addo on Monday, November 30, 2020, found that Mr. Koranteng by his own admission had committed infractions in the process and that the Electoral Commission had not acted unreasonably.

His case was thus dismissed.

Source: Citinewsroom.com