Judges, Judgments and National Judgment:

My first close encounter with the election petition had to do with how much live coverage of the proceedings was going to cost Ghana TV (GTV). I was puzzled because all I could see were so many avenues for revenue for GTV.

During the proceedings, for hours on end, nothing of significance would happen. It was like a super slow motion boxing match which ebbed and flowed with occasional flurries of action day after day after day. There were many long breaks during the proceedings when the cameras roamed aimlessly through the court room, looking for action.

During all these periods, when the camera roamed around the court room, GTV could have been running ads at multiples of normal charges to advertisers because the viewership was so great. Coverage of the proceedings had shred any modicum of productivity in Ghana to zero.

Advertisements were shunned by GTV because the "dignity of the proceedings" would be impugned by such wanton commercialism. So be it. That's Ghanaian sticky inert logic for you. I rest my case.

There is still probably a market for an edited condensed version of the proceedings as a documentary, which could still earn significant revenue for the national TV network. What's stopping GTV from thriving from this possibility?

Oh how we generate losses from profits. That's Ghana for you. We say that a lot these days!

From the outset, it was clear that many had lost sight of the fact that this was a highly technical legal issue and not a continuing political campaign. Instead of focusing on the quality of the petitioners' evidence and the burden of proof, pundits and journalists continued to focus on style instead of substance. Every day, strongly partisan coverage was served up to the hungry masses by numerous spin doctors, which further polarized the country. It was rare to find a non- partisan legal mind walking the blind through the forest of facts and the maze of exhibits in a manner that enlightened the loud crowd in the cheap seats. The Ghana Bar Association did not mount a primer of terms and procedures for the unlettered, so a political campaign continued long after extra time and penalty kicks of the closely contested 2012 elections had ended.

During the proceedings, everybody with vocal cords exercised their right to freedom of speech as if this was without limits. The judiciary refreshingly enforced the law and fined and imprisoned the most egregious perpetrators. Various opinions were offered on the judges' actions because this is an environment in which for so long, no one has paid a penalty for flouting any law. During the same period, the Parliamentary Accounts Committee was warning perjurers instead of acting against them. The judges have restored some measure of dignity to the poor reputation of governmental institutions for as long as at lasts.

For more astute observers, the core issues raised by the election petition had less to do with politics but more to do with management, training and institutional support for the Electoral Commission. The Presiding Officers at the centre of the controversy behaved like many Ghanaians given an important responsibility. They approached a non-negotiable constitutional duty with a lackadaisical and non-chalant attitude. This absence of commitment to national duty is what is destroying the country. There is a culture of irresponsibility and dishonesty across the board and irrespective of which party is in power, unless real leadership is brought to bear on this issue, all our plans and achievements as a nation will be undermined.

As the date of the announcement of the Supreme Court decision neared, there was a sudden desire to diminish the value of the adversarial legal system and have us all sit around singing 'Kumbayah'. A bizarre discussion about "power- sharing" took centre-stage. Somehow everyone had no interest in what the voting public wanted. The amnestic political class needed a reminder that the fact that ultimate power resides with the individual voter is the bedrock of the system of democracy we practice, however imperfectly. Politicians and numerous opinion leaders anticipating blood on the streets, seemed to forget that no one had the right, after being voted into office to serve the people, to share power which does not belong to them. From this totally ill - advised discussion, it is apparent that the true meaning of democracy is yet to be made manifest to the political elite. So far, political office represents positions, titles and perks. Remember the "Bastille".

Coincident with the wait for the verdict, an important anniversary of the opposition NPP was marked. It took a strange twist as one of their stalwarts, Prof. Ocquaye sought to rewrite history by dispossessing Dr. Kwame Nkrumah of his place in Ghana's political history. It may not have occurred to him that Nkrumah's legacy is a Pan-African one, born with Ghana's independence and culminating in our lifetime, with the release of Madiba Nelson Mandela from prison to completely rid Africa of the remaining vestiges of illegitimate white rule. So the Ocquaye interlude was an unfortunate diversion. This did not help the cause of the NPP in the court of public opinion.

The hyperbole about possible post- decision violence was only less unfortunate than the proposition that Mr. Akuffo-Addo was to be commended for going to court instead of leading his supporters into the streets. There was even mention of a Nobel Peace Prize for exercising the right to legal remedy for a perceived wrong. Not much else can be said about this. An election is a contest of ideas not a war, so this form of ideation must be purged from political parties by their leaders if we are to advance the cause of democracy in Ghana.

The flavour of the whole discussion including strange prophecies from all sorts of 'men of God", was largely misguided.

The petitioners went to court, pled their case and lost. It was their legitimate right and they exercised it. On the NDC side, noises are now being made about the cost of the process to the economy. Democracy comes at a cost to society so that's an argument not worth making.

The court has ruled and there are lessons for the nation from the final decision and we would be wise to take heed and not politicize a perfectly imperfect legal decision.

A month after the decision was rendered, there are still symposia, massaging the results and providing new numbers such Okudzeto's proposition that the petitioners won by 5-4. We must all learn to respect the law even if it does not favour our particular parochial interests. That is how the rule of law is fostered in a democracy. To this end, the resistance of the Ghana Police to attempts by the PPP to mount an anti-corruption demonstration, are disgraceful to say the least. The reasons given, harken back to the Acheampong era, when transparent lies were routinely told by government institutions to undermine the rights of citizens. The job of the police is to provide a safe environment for the expression of the democratic will of citizens. Once again, the culture of the Police Service is undermining rights of citizens guaranteed under the constitution.

In any event, the judge we should all be following is Justice Yaw Appau the sole Judgment Debt Commissioner. The revelations from his work are truly frightening. The intentional absence of a culture of documentation in the public service, seriously poor work ethic and a dearth of care and attention to protecting the nation's assets should bring all taxpayers to tears. In one case a debt of GHC 16 million from 2010 has grown to close to GHC 600million and there are individuals whose ineptitude or callous disregard for the law, their sworn duty to the state and the well-being of citizens, who are responsible for this. Will any of the public servants and others responsible for these genocidal financial atrocities be held accountable? Yes. Genocidal because ordinary Ghanaians die daily for want of clean water. Women across the land die in childbirth daily from a poorly supported health care system, our mentally ill go untreated in a 19th century system and this is what those who ask for our votes or are appointed to protect the interests of the ordinary citizen do with the responsibility and authority bestowed on them. Give them all due process and have them pay the price.

Will it be business (if we can call it that) as usual? Is this going to be merely another transactional administration or a transformative one? For Mr. Mahama, opportunities for transformation are at every turn on the long and winding road of national development. There is work to be done for the ordinary voting citizen who is the most powerful unit of every true democracy.

Today, is tomorrow's yesterday.
Prof. T. P. Manus Ulzen
[email protected]
October 1, 2013
Dedication: On the 14th Anniversary of his passing, this article is dedicated to the memory of late Edward A. Ulzen and those public servants from his era who served their nation and continent with discipline, national pride and honesty.