GYEDU FRIMPONG & ANOR vs. JOANA GYAN CUDJOE
2024
SUPREME COURT
GHANA
CORAM
- KULENDI JSC SITTING AS A SINGLE JUDGE
Areas of Law
- Civil Procedure
- Constitutional Law
2024
SUPREME COURT
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
Sitting as a single Justice of the Supreme Court, Kulendi JSC dismissed an ex-parte motion filed three days before Ghana’s 7 December 2024 elections seeking to restrain the Electoral Commission from holding the Amenfi Central parliamentary poll because of alleged forgery by the NDC candidate. Although the motion was procedurally defective for omitting the mandatory statement of case at filing, the Court regularised that defect but found the substantive requirements for an ex-parte interim injunction unsatisfied. Weighing the absence of irreparable harm to the applicants against the grave public inconvenience of halting preparations already completed for a national election, the Court held that the balance of convenience, public interest and precedent favoured refusing the injunction.
<u>KULENDI JSC.</u>
The Applicants have by an ex-parte motion filed on the 4th of December 2024, prayed this Honorable Court for the grant of an ex parte order of interim injunction. Significantly, this application is brought only (3) three days prior to the conduct of the all-important December 7th elections organised by the 3rd Interested Party, for the purpose of electing individuals at the Presidential and Parliamentary levels, to steer the affairs of this nation, for the next four years. The Applicants are praying this Honourable Court for the grant of an ex parte order of interim injunction restraining the 3rd Interested Party, their agents, servants and assigns from organizing the Parliamentary Constituency elections in Amenfi Central Constituency in the Western region of the Republic of Ghana which would include the 1st Interested Party, Joana Gyan Cudjoe as the Parliamentary candidate for the Amenfi West Constituency representing the 2nd Interested Party, the National Democratic Congress.
Having set out the request tabled by the Applicant to this Court, I consider it necessary to set out in full the material depositions of the Applicant which have animated the filing of the instant application in order to properly situate my analysis, findings and conclusions:
"I, MAAME EFFUA BENTUM, ESQ, of House No. 5 Owula Mampong Okai Street, (Suhum Street) Kokomlemle, Accra, make oath and say as follows: 1. That I am the Deponent herein and a Lawyer at Amoakwa-Boadu & Osei-Mensah Law Consult, lawyers for the Applicants/Applicants herein. 2. That I have the consent and authority of the Applicants to depose to this Affidavit which unless otherwise stated are facts within my personal knowledge, information and belief which said facts have come to my knowledge in the course of my duties as Counsel for the Applicants.
*3. That at the hearing of this application, Counsel shall seek leave of this Honorable Court to refer to all processes filed in this suit as if same were reproduced in this Affidavit in extenso and sworn to on oath.
4. That on the 2nd December 2024, Applicants caused their lawyers to file a Certiorari Application in the registry of this Honourable Court against the High Court, Sekondi and serve same on the Interested Parties for a Ruling given by the High court Sekondi on the 11th of November 2024, to be brought up to this Honourable Supreme Court for same to be quashed. * *5. That it i