Election Petition: Figures were cooked from nowhere – Tsatsu Tsikata

Counsel for the Petitioner, John Dramani Mahama, in the ongoing election petition has accused Ghana’s Electoral Commission of cooking up figures in the 2020 elections.

According to the lead Counsel, Tsatsu Tsikata, the Electoral Commission collated figures in favour of the New Patriotic Party presidential candidate Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to the detriment of the other candidates.

Mr Tsikata was reacting to an objection raised by the legal team of President Akufo-Addo, urging the court to reject the witness statement of the NDC General Secretary Johnson Asiedu Nketia.

The president’s counsel, Akoto Ampaw had pointed out certain paragraphs in Mr Asiedu’s statement that he claimed were scandalous and without basis.

In response to the objection raised, Mr Tsikata insisted that the paragraph pointed out, including paragraphs 30, 32 and 33, confirmed that the entire election was a grand scheme of the commission to rig the December election in favour of the NPP candidate.

“The figures were simply being cooked to obtain its already pre-determined outcome. The point we are making is that there has been sufficient basis made in the pleadings for there to be evidence that figures were just being cooked.

“The figures were coming from nowhere and without reference to anybody. They did not also follow due process of allowing each candidate’s party agent to be in the know of the figures put out there.

“My Lord, with the greatest respect I find it very difficult to see how any objective observer of the ever changing figures that has been put forward fail to see that we are not justified that the figures were indeed being cooked,” Mr Tsikata mounted a spirited defence urging the court to submit the witness statement in evidence.

He further indicated that the figures being cooked is indeed an indication that the figures were simply thrown out in no clear direction.

It is for this reason that the petitioner’s legal team are asking the seven-member panel of the apex court to accept the statement of Mr Asiedu Nketia.

The court went on recess to make a final determination of whether the General Secretary’s statement should be accepted.

Following that, seven paragraphs of Mr Asiedu Nketia’s witness statement was struck out. The apex court was of the view that Mr Nketia could not speak to said allegations.

Mr Asiedu Nketia, is the first to be called to the witness stand, on behalf of the petitioner, John Mahama as one of his witnesses.

The election petition hearing continues on February 1, 2021.