FOREWORD
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The principle
of universal adult suffrage by
which the Executive and
Legislative Branches of State
are elected every four years has
been firmly rooted in the 4th
Republican Constitution 1992.
Indeed, it
should be noted that the
Electoral Process is not
confined to the casting of votes
on an election day and the
subsequent declaration of
election results thereafter.
There are
series of other processes, such
as the demarcation of the
country into constituencies,
registration of qualified
voters, registration of
political parties, the
organization of the whole
polling system to manage and
conduct the elections ending up
with the declaration of results,
and so on.
Articles 45
to 56 of the Constitution 1992
deal with the functions and
powers of the Electoral
Commission and the organization
of Political Parties. From these
constitutional provisions, it is
clear that the duties imposed on
the Electoral Commission are
onerous and naturally, there are
bound to be conflicts and
disputes or both arising in the
course of the performance of
these functions.
The 1992
Constitution has by the
provisions contained in article
125 mandated the Judiciary as
the Institution of State
responsible for the
administration of justice and
vested with the exercise of
judicial power and, in that
regard, the Judiciary shall be
entirely independent.
It
is therefore
important that the Judiciary
positions itself to deal
promptly, efficiently,
effectively and fairly with all
electoral disputes that may be
brought before the courts before
and after the December 2008
elections.
It was
in pursuit of the above ideals
that I made a promise to the
people of Ghana on the 17th day
of July, 2008 in a speech I
delivered at the formal launch
of the PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT
CONCERT at the British Council,
Accra wherein I stated:
I would
like to assure the good
people of Ghana who have
entrusted us with the exercise
of judicial power that we are
committed and ready to
contribute to bringing
peace and good governance. I
appreciate the sobering fact
that an important safeguard of
election integrity lies in an
effective resolution of
complaints and appeals with
minimum delay.
There is no
doubt that the slow pace of
adjudication of electoral
disputes is contrary to the
philosophical underpinnings of
the
1992
Constitution which mandates the
smooth operation of the
democratic culture in Ghana.
The process
by which electoral disputes are
to be adjudicated is
procedurally different from the
processes available for
initiating other disputes in the
Law Courts. There is therefore
the real need to equip and
appraise judges, lawyers,
political parties and indeed all
other stakeholders of the
substantive law, as well as the
rules of procedure for the
adjudication of electoral
disputes.
This Manual on Election
Adjudication in Ghana is
therefore a fulfillment of the
pledge I made on 17 July 2008 in
the speech referred to (supra) .
I made the following promise:
To aid judges in their work, we
will publish an easy to
read, clear and concise booklet
or handbook, on election dispute
adjudication.
It
is therefore my hope that all
who will use this Manual will
find it really useful; as a
ready access to election
disputes and adjudication.
Once again, may I assure our
compatriots that the Judiciary
is well positioned and equipped
to deal competently,
expeditiously and efficiently
with all election disputes
within reasonable time lines.
I would like to conclude by
acknowledging the invaluable
contribution of colleague
Justices of the Supreme Court,
who assisted in putting this
Manual together, and acted
in other ways to make this work
complete.
Finally, I recognise with deep
gratitude, the assistance and
advice given by the two pro bono
Editors of this Manual:
Dr Seth Y Bimpong-Buta,
Consulting Editor/ Editor
-in-Chief of The Supreme
Court of Ghana Law Reports
and Retired Director of the
Ghana School of Law; and
Professor Kofi Kumado, Director,
Legon Centre for International
Affairs (LECIA), Faculty of Law,
University of Ghana. I would
like to register my profound
gratitude to them and also to
all others who, by their
assistance, have contributed in
no small measure to the
preparation of this Manual.
The UNDP, one
of our strategic development
partners, readily provided funds
to cover the publication of this
Manual and the training of
judges who will handle electoral
disputes. We are deeply grateful
to them for this timely
assistance.
LADY
JUSTICE GEORGINA T WOOD (MRS)
Chief Justice of The
Republic of Ghana
Chief Justice
s Chambers
Supreme Court
Accra
Ghana
November 2008
