NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS v. ATTORNEY-GENERAL & ORS, MARK TAKYI-BANSON v. ATTORNEY-GENERAL & ORS

PROF. KOTEY, JSC:-

1. Introduction

On 25th June 2020, we gave judgment in these consolidated suits but deferred our reasons, which we now give.

We unanimously dismissed the principal reliefs of the plaintiffs in the two consolidated suits. We denied the claims of the plaintiffs for a declaration of unconstitutionality regarding the non-inclusion of the current voter identification card and birth certificate for the purpose of identification of a person who applies for registration as a voter in the voter registration process to be undertaken by the Electoral Commission (2nd Defendant). We also dismissed the reliefs of the plaintiffs challenging the constitutionality of the compilation of a new register of voters by the Electoral Commission. We finally upheld the constitutionality of the Public Elections (Registration of Voters) (Amendment) Regulations, 2020 (C.I.126) and ordered all stakeholders and Ghanaian eligible voters to comply with the terms thereof.

We partly granted two reliefs of the plaintiff in Writ No. J1/9/2020 subject to the operation of C.I.126. Those two reliefs, effectively, were a statement of the meaning and effect of the constitutional provisions stated therein and did not convey substantive rights enforceable by the plaintiffs.

The antecedent facts of the case are that the 2nd Defendant had indicated that in preparation for the 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections it would compile a new register of voters. In preparation for the compilation of the new register of voters, the 2nd Defendant gave gazette notification for the making of Regulations intituled Public Elections (Registration of Voters) (Amendment) Regulations on 3 March 2020. This Instrument did not provide for the inclusion of the current voter identification card as a document for the identification of persons who apply for registration as voters.

On 19th March, 2020, the National Democratic Party (1st Plaintiff), a major political party, issued a writ against the Attorney General (1st Defendant) and the Electoral Commission (2nd Defendant) invoking the original jurisdiction of this court to interpret and enforce the Constitution under articles 2 (1) and 130 (1) thereof.

The 1st Plaintiff sought the following reliefs:

1. A declaration that upon a true and proper interpretation of Article 45(a) of the 1992 Constitution, 2nd Defendant has the constitutional power to, and can compile a register of voters only once, and thereafter revise it periodically, as m