NPP lauds court ruling; but doubts significance of the auditing

Spokespersons of the NPP lawyers in the election petition, Yaw Buaben Asamoah has pat the Supreme Court on the back for showing maturity in ordering audition into petitioners' affidavits.

“First of all I think we should be very proud of the Supreme Court. From a position of hesitance to sometimes when we've all expressed a bit of disbelieve in their processes, I think they have demonstrated maturity and Ghanaians should be proud of them.”

Lawyer for the third respondent Tsatsu Tsikata in his cross examination Thursday claimed the number of pink sheets submitted by the petitioners was less than they claimed. He therefore requested an audit be done to ascertain the actual exhibits attached to the petitioners' affidavits.

The Supreme Court Judges subsequently ruled that an international auditing firm, KPMG referees immediate recounting of pink sheets at the cost of all parties involved in the election petition.

Mr Buaben Asamoah told Joy FM's Top Story on Thursday that the petitioners had since the beginning of the hearing supported the respondents' call for a head count of the pink sheets, but had wanted the court to go beyond just a head count.

Today's ruling comes across to them as a prayer answered, he indicated.

“This is a comprehensive count…I am very, very happy the way the court has conducted [this],” he said.

Mr Asomoah said the first count in the court to ascertain the number of pink sheets the petitioners are contesting on the face of the affidavits has exposed the weakness of the counsel for the third respondent in mathematics.

Mr Tsatsu Tsikata had also challenged that the figures stated on the affidavits do not add up to the 11842 as claimed by the petitioners. However the court confirmed the total figure after a count with calculator.

But lawyer Samson Lardy Ayenini has noted that auditing pink sheets was an obvious point he knew the court would arrive at after it indicated earlier in the hearing that it was premature.

“This whole petition is about auditing the numbers, and that this goes to the heart of the petition, and so that decision was an obvious point that we have to come to.”

Meanwhile, he has warned that the outcome of the auditing would come with “certain predictable implication”, if it turns out that the number of pink sheets is indeed less than the number in contention.

Mr Ayenini would however not speak to what would be the implication.

Mr Tsitaka had indicated in court that the auditing would expose the credibility of the key witness, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia.

But Mr Buaben Asomoah, who is also a deputy communications director of the NPP, has doubted any implication on the petitioners' case.

“In a sense, for me, the absolute numbers in terms of pink sheet numbers have never been important in this matter, otherwise the court would not have allowed Dr Bawumia to consistently update and revise the ones he wants to rely on.”

He however appealed to the KPMG to slash down substantially the cost implication as a social service to improve Ghana's democratic process. He contended being selected on a silver platter and the mentioning of their name were enough advertisements to boost their international credibility.