"...Without doubt, this is the most consequential Ghanaian public policy question since the overthrow of Kwame Nkrumah...During the last 5 years alone, Ghana has lost over $6 billion though the illegal oil contract scheme the basis of which is illegitimate concession laws...now, tweaked into the Mahama Oil Hybrid System (MOHS) for Ghana...Mr. Mahama must now answer the simple but important questions...directly...Is Ghana receiving now, and is Ghana going to receive tomorrow, Fair-Share Oil?....".
Religion is a very delicate subject to discuss in public. We are told from history that the eastern question led to World War I (1914-1918).In history, the eastern question refers to how the Ottoman sultanate predominantly Muslims treated their Christian subjects. Up to 1878, the eastern question centered on one issue: What should occur to the Balkans if and when the Ottoman Empire collapsed as a formidable political factor in the southeastern Europe?
It is with no surprise that the Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG) writes again about the political and legal gymnastics of the Attorney General (AG) on the Woyome case. Over a year ago, AFAG called for the resignation of the AG after Alfred Agbesi Woyome wrote a letter to her as a beneficiary of USD 1 million of the fraudulent payment to him. Indeed the AG has since mellowed although as a face saving measure, she occasionally pretend ready to battle Woyome in court.
The woman began to grumble and talk at the nurses in an impolite manner. I raised my head, looked at her and shook it speechlessly. A colleague nurse attempted to put forward a defence by responding to her but I signaled him to stop. I don't really fancy helping patients to create a scene.
We are being forced as a nation by a man who claims to speak directly and daily to God to falsely believe that the sole purpose of God for Ghana today, is to see Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the NPP’s Presidential Candidate, win the December 7 Elections. Interestingly, Akufo-Addo is not even a Christian and attends the Ridge Church in Accra sparingly. Akufo-Addo only visits churches to canvass for political votes. Period! Yet, he is being paraded as a “saviour†designated and anointed by God to save Ghana.
A couple of weeks ago, in my article entitled “Papa Kwesi Nduom is too big to be ignoredâ€, I did mention that it was not right for Papa Kwesi Nduom to have been disqualified without giving him the opportunity to correct his nomination form. I also did mention that in an ideal situation, there should have been a desk in the office of the Electoral Commission that helps Presidential candidates with the submission of their forms.
In what appears to be an immediate press release issued on the evening of 31st October 2016 the Electoral Commission stated that it has today filed an application at the Supreme Court to quash the High Court decision in Republic v Mrs. Charlotte Osei and the Electoral Commission; Ex Party Papa Kwesi Nduom, 28th October 2016. It stated, inter alia, that it will “seek clarity on the relevant aspects of the law on candidate nomination.†The said press release will be on my website, martinamidu.com, for ease of reference.
Two starkly contrasting opinions with regard to the High Court’s ruling on the suit by PPP presidential candidate Dr Paa Kwesi Ndoum challenging his disqualification from the presidential race by the Electoral Commission, have emerged.
One opinion is that the court’s quashing of the disqualification of Dr Nduom represents a victory for the PPP and democracy. The other is that the ruling betrays the Electoral Commission’s lack of understanding of the country’s electoral laws and the extent of the Commission’s powers as contained therein.
We are inclined to accept the first opinion and reject the second, because the administration of justice is dynamic and dependent on how the law is interpreted by judges. That is why the administration of justice is not restricted to one category of law courts but a hierarchy of courts.
That is why an aggrieved citizen seeking legal redress may take his case through a chain of courts starting from the lowest court of jurisdiction through several superior courts to the Supreme Court. Different judges interpret the law according to their own understanding of its provisions: A hypothetical figure of a panel of five judges sits on a case: Three vote in favour of a conviction or the granting of reliefs sought. Two dissent. The accused or respondent files an appeal. Seven judges sit on the appeal, and hear the very same evidence as the lower court and by a majority decision, uphold the appeal.
An aggrieved citizen dissatisfied with an Appeal Court ruling may proceed to the Supreme Court. Even a reconstituted panel of the Supreme Court can review the court’s own ruling. The opinions which emerged from the High Court’s ruling on the Nduom case were the same opinions that greeted the Supreme Court ruling that the Electoral Commission must allow party agents access to signed collation sheets.
A citizen, Mr Kwesi Tease-Eshun last September dragged the EC to court, arguing that the failure of the Commission to allow contesting candidates or their agents to sign collation sheets in the parliamentary and presidential elections, was inconsistent with the constitution and the duties of the EC.
Lawyer for the plaintiff, Mr Akoto Ampaw appeared to be beside himself with pleasant surprise, that the Supreme Court not only granted all the reliefs sought by his client, but “even more.â€
This we dare say, is ample testimony that the rule of law and use of the courts remain the most democratic and lawful avenues for the pursuit of legal redress in election disputes. Our hope is that all such disputes will always be quickly heard and disposed of by the courts with similar dispatch.
The political bells are ringing, politicians are busy, the political tension is mounting on Ghana and civilians are worried. Count down, is forty plus days for Ghana to decide. All we could hear from the flag bearers of the two main political parties is “vote for me, my party has done better than their partyâ€.
To say you’ve never seen it happen. It means you aren’t that old. But history has it all in her reservoir. Presidential transitions also known as presidential interregnum across the world vary and they carry their own baggage. It is done by countries that practice democracy ---be it the Westminster type in the United Kingdom or the presidential system in the United States of America (USA).
It is nebulous for an institution which has refused to respond to inquiries about the status of some very important matters to pick and choose who to investigate to soothe their convenience. The Economic and Organized Crimes Office (EOCO)'s quest to investigate the sources of funding of the Progressive People's Party (PPP) and the All People's Congress (APC) is discriminatory, unfair and bias. EOCO as an institution lacks the moral right to commence inquiry into the activities of any other institution in relation mainly because of their selective attitude towards matters of national interest.
Around April 2013, the Executive Board of International Monetary Fund (IMF) approves a $918-million loan support Ghana’s ailing economy over the next three years. Observers are wondering how Ghana will be able to repay the loan and meet the strict conditions imposed by creditors.
Institutions of state bending to the will and wishes of the incumbent spark anger, frustration and eventual societal implosion. When an incumbent's back is to the wall and is desperate, it would force the institutions of state to do its bidding, and it takes a kind of mental discipline and professional training to hold on to that sense of moral compass to resist such executive test of wills and loyalty.
Every president ought to hire smart chaps like me and pay us fantastic salaries to teach them the ropes when it comes to meeting voters’ expectations, coping with rival politics in times of national economic difficulties, fending off negative propaganda and keeping tax payers and everybody else very happy all the time.
The Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) in an unprecedented move has invited leaders of two political parties to explain the sources of their income for their political campaigns.
He is in his mid-40’s; and under normal circumstances, he would be considered a man in his prime. But when he opens his mouth, it instantly becomes disappointingly clear that Mr. Hassan Ayariga has the mindset and temperament of a child who never grew past six or seven years old.
