Ghana’s Election Result Upheld as Supreme Court Dismisses Opposition Petition.
The petition challenging Ghana’s 2020 presidential election results has been dismissed without merit by the Supreme Court. The outcome is as expected. While it removes a challenge to government business and confirms Ghana’s democratic norms, it also cements certain problematic elements of the Ghanaian political landscape. Namely, opposition concerns about the transparency and partiality of key public institutions. The risks associated with that impression peak every four years.
Significance – inadequate evidence, inadequate support
The petition was brought by the opposition candidate former president and National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate John Dramani Mahama. He sought to overturn the legal instrument declaring the incumbent President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo as victor, and prompt a run-off. The argument underlying this challenge was the NDC allegation that an error was made in announcing the official results and that although the error was rectified by the Electoral Commission (EC), the latter had not consulted all parties before doing so, and therefore, its conclusions must be nullified.
The verdict will come as a surprise to few – please see Ghana’s Hung Parliament and Contested President to Be Sworn In. The case brought by Mahama was weakened by its limited supporting evidence as well as a number of political and circumstantial factors. To quote the court ruling, testimonies from two of the claimant’s three witnesses were “fanciful” and “the little said about their testimonies relative to the issues at stake, the better.” Aside from this, five of the seven Supreme Court justices that heard the petition were appointed by Akufo-Addo. A sixth was appointed by a former president from the same New Patriotic Party (NPP)[1].
One of the central themes of the trial was the unsuccessful attempt by the NDC legal team to compel the chairperson of the EC, Jean Mensa, to give evidence. Whilst the Supreme Court gave convincing arguments for why they could not force her to take the stand, there is no doubt that her doing so would have greatly helped to diminish the public perception of alleged culpability on the part of the EC. This will also provide an avenue for the NDC to attempt to undermine her legitimacy in future elections.
Outlook – adherence to the law
The manner in which principal stakeholders have been able to adhere to laid down laws and procedures to challenge an election result is indicative of Ghana’s low, long-term political risk rating. Similarly, the Supreme Court, having heard the case and given its judgement within the allocated timeframe, has put a cap on time lost for government business, due to the uncertainty that the legal case created[2].
Nevertheless, questions about the impartiality of the Electoral Commission and the Supreme Court will continue in the public discourse for the following reasons:
Almost all of the statements made throughout the duration of the case were unanimously given against Mahama as well as the final verdict giving some the impression that their stance was cemented from the start of proceedings;
We can expect few instances in which the apex court will rule against the interests of the ruling government – of the 16 current justices, 11 were appointed by Akufo-Addo himself and another three were appointed under the NPP government led by John Kuffuor.
And the leadership of Jean Mensa at the EC will be continually questioned by the NDC because:
While they ultimately proved immaterial to the final election outcome, significant were errors made during the voting and collation phases of the poll that have not yet been accounted for;
The reluctance of Mensa to testify in this case has deepened the resolve of those who have been accusing her of political bias since her appointment in July 2018.
In a public statement following the Supreme Court judgement, Mahama has disagreed with the process and the outcome of the case, but accepts the power of the court. Meanwhile, the NDC still has the benefit of a technically hung parliament, through which it may be able to exert some influence over policy. Please see Ministerial nominations announced in Ghana.
[1] Chief Justice Kwasi Anin-Yeboah was appointed by John Kuffuor (also of the NPP) and Justice Yaw Appau was appointed by Mahama.
[2] Unlike the 2013 petition that took 9 months to resolve, severely denting business confidence.
*Photo credit: David Stanley, Black Star
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