Court throws out injunction against NPP
An Accra Fast Track High Court on Thursday threw out an injunction brought against the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to halt the parliamentary primary at the Korle Klottey constituency.
The Court presided over by Justice K. A. Ofori Atta said the party members (Plaintiffs) were unable to demonstrate to the Court their legal and equitable rights that should be protected by the Court.
The ruling gives the NPP the green light to hold primaries at the Constituency and some members told the GNA that following the ruling the party would notify the Electoral Commission and the primaries would be held on Saturday, August 1.
On the balance of convenience, the Court refused the order for an injunction filed against the NPP and Nii Noi Nortey, one of the candidates contesting the party’s primaries at Korle Klottey Constituency in Accra.
The ruling was greeted with joy by the sympathisers of Nortey who powdered Talcum on themselves and carried Nortey shoulders high amidst singing and dancing from the court premises.
Other sympathisers dressed in white T-Shirt with Inscription on “I am for Nii Noi Nortey” on the back view and with front view “I am for the Street boy,” hugged themselves on the Court premises.
The Court early on stood the case down from 0930am till 1300 hours after it had declined a request by Mr Egbert Faibille that the matter be adjourned because he returned from a trip last night and had not read through defendants’ affidavit in opposition.
Sympathisers who had thronged the Court waited till 1300 hours when the case was called.
Mr Philip Addison, the lawyer who represented presidential candidate Nana Akufo-Addo in the 2012 election petition, is contesting Nii Noi Nortey, the party’s Korle Klottey chairman, who is also eyeing the seat.
Valentino Nii Noi Nortey was alleged to have presented a fake University of Ghana certificate to the party’s Vetting Committee.
This compelled some party members in the constituency to file an injunction to halt the election.
The plaintiffs, namely Juliana Briandt, George Attor Williams, Mary Crentsil and three others, want a declaration that Nii Noi Nortey acted fraudulently when he declared and submitted to the NPP that he held a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) Political Science degree awarded by the University of Ghana.
The plaintiffs also want a declaration that the NPP breached article 296 of the 1992 Constitution when it failed to communicate to the plaintiffs the outcome of the two petitions submitted in respect of Nii Noi Nortey’s bid to be elected as the party’s parliamentary candidate for the Korle Klottey Constituency for the 2016 polls.
Among the reliefs sought is an order directed at the NPP to preclude Nii Noi Nortey from contesting in its primaries for the 2016 elections for “his fraudulent conduct which is a violation of article 3(d)(1)”of the party’s constitution.
The plaintiffs, among others, prayed the Court to grant an order of injunction restraining the NPP, its officials, servants, agents or any persons claiming under or through and/or any of them, howsoever described, from holding the 2016 parliamentary primaries of the NPP for the constituency.
The party, represented by Mr Garry Nimako Marfo, noted that the plaintiffs have not been able to demonstrate the injury that would occasion them should the injunction be granted.
According to Mr Marfo, they had also not shown the legal rights they sought to protect should the injunction be granted.
He said the party would rather suffer hardship should the injunction be granted because it had spent a lot in mobilising for the polls.
Mr Dennis Adjei Dwomoh, who represented Nortey, vehemently opposed the injunction, saying if it was granted it would dwindle the resources of the party.
On the issue of disqualification of candidates, the party gives out grievance procedure that Nortey had been cleared by the party’s committee.
He noted that the issue of disqualification could be based on allegations, speculations and conjunctures.
Source: GNA