“I don’t know the figures, Mahama, Akufo-Addo got” – Asiedu Nketia

The NDC General Secretary Johnson Asiedu Nketia, who is the first witness in the ongoing election petition says he does not know the figures that the two leading parties candidates got in the December 7 elections. 

Although, the NDC claimed to have won the petition for which they are in court, the NDC General Secretary, who has generally been evasive of mentioning figures related to the total valid votes cast said he cannot say what John Mahama or Nana Akufo-Addo had.

Mr Nketia was responding to a question from Justice Yaw Appau, asking the NDC witness what they claim was the outcome of the 2020 general election.

Here are excerpts of the exchanges from Justice Yaw Appau (YA) and Johnson Asiedu Nketia (JAN) after Counsel for President Akufo-Addo, Akoto Ampaw ended his cross examination

YA: I know that when you purchase a pen drive it is empty and the data on any onedrive is generated by someone so the onedrive attached to the hard copy, who generated the data on the pendrive

JAN: My Lord, as I have said I haven’t seen the pendrive and its contents before till today (Monday), I was relying only on the hard copies. It was discovered by our election directorate and the legal directorate

YA: So, they gave it to you and you exhibited it as part of your exhibits

JAN: I did not exhibit that document

(Tsatsu Tsikata jumps in)

TT: That document is part of our exhibition, he did not exhibit it

YA: I want to find out who generated it, so your team generated and gave it to you without you checking its content

JAN: I just saw the hard copies of the documents because of the time pressure, I didn’t see the document, I am only seeing it for the first time today (Monday)

YA: In all the figures that were mentioned as the valid votes cast and all those things, you were saying if the figures were correct and that there were inconsistencies in the figures. I will ask you, in your own calculations what were the total valid votes cast in the presidential elections on December 7, 2020

JAN: My Lord, those calculations are reserved for a meeting for us to reconcile the figures because the first respondent herself keep changing the figures.

(Chief Justice Anin Yeboah steps in to put an end to the banter)

AN: Tell the court, when you started giving your submissions you said you had representatives from all the 275 polling stations across the country, and they were to collate the figures and he is asking you from that, what figures did you get.

JAN: My Lord, I haven’t brought that figure to court

YA: Very well, from your own calculations what were the valid votes cast in favour of the petitioner (John Mahama) to your knowledge

JAN: My Lord, when we discovered this discrepancies it was difficult to even tell what figures he got

YA: So, you don’t know, just answer

JAN: I don’t have them here

YA: What were the figures from your calculations did the second respondent (Nana Akufo-Addo) get as total valid votes cast in his favour

JAN: Mr Lord, I don’t have those figures here

YA: Thank you, that’s all

The hearing continues on Tuesday, February 2, 2021.