NDC distances itself from Amaliba's attack on Justice Dotse

The governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) has distanced itself from comments made by a leading member of its legal team, Abraham Amaliba.

A Deputy General Secretary of the party, Mr. Koku Anyidoho, said Mr. Amaliba's comments are entirely his and do not reflect the position of the governing party.

Barely hours after a Supreme Court judge Justice Jones Dotse granted a rare interview clarifying a recent judgment of the apex court which divided opinion, a member of the NDC's legal team, Mr. Amaliba spoke to Joy News condemning the eminent jurist.

Justice Dotse's comments were in respect of varying interpretations given to the Supreme Court's judgment on a case brought against the Electoral Commission (EC) and the Attorney-General by a former Youth Organizer of the People’s National Convention (PNC), Abu Ramadan and one Evans Nimako.

The Court asked the EC to delete from the electoral roll names of persons who used National Health Insurance cards as proof of citizenship to register to vote.

The Electoral Commission (EC) interpreted the judgment of the court as not ordering it to delete names of persons who registered with the outlawed cards.

The EC’s interpretation was countered by the lawyer of the plaintiffs, Nana Asante Bedietuo who said the ruling of the court was for the EC to clean the register of NHIS carders.

Clarifying the judgment, Justice Jones Dotse disclosed on May 29 that the court’s ruling asked the EC to delete names of persons with NHIS carders from the register.

His comment did not sit well with Mr Amaliba who claimed the judge has brought the name of the Supreme Court into disrepute .

He told Joy News' Evans Mensah on Top Story, Thursday, May 29 that “it is unethical for a judge to come out in the open to discuss his own judgment.”

Mr. Amaliba said the judge spoke like a “political commentator” and his views cannot overrule that of the entire court.

But in a swift reaction, Mr Anyidohu said the NDC does not share the views expressed by Mr Amaliba.

He said the NDC has gained greater understanding in “What the learned Justice [Justice Dotse] of the Supreme Court said” and have learned something from it.

According to him, Justice Dotse only “went on to reiterate the position of his colleagues in the Supreme Court.”

Meanwhile, one of the plaintiffs, Abu Ramadan has indicated he will be heading back to court to seek an enforcement of the court's orders.