THE REPUBLIC v. THE HIGH COURT JUDGE, SUNYANI, EX PARTE: ALHAJI COLLINS DAUDA

R U L I N G

DR. DATE-BAH JSC:- UNANIMOUS RULING

This case raises an important issue of jurisdiction in relation to election petitions. It is this: does the High Court have jurisdiction to entertain any election petition under the Representation of the People Law 1992 (PNDCL 284) before the Electoral Commission has declared the results of that election?

The facts

Before we provide an answer to this question, let me set out the material facts of this case. This is an application by Alhaji Collins Dauda, the Parliamentary candidate for the National Democratic Congress for the Asutifi South Constituency in the Brong Ahafo Region. The application seeks to invoke the supervisory jurisdiction of this Court to quash, by an order of certiorari, the ruling of His Lordship Justice Francis Kwabena Opoku of the Sunyani High Court, dated 6th January 2009, and to prohibit the said learned judge from going on with the suit number C11/01/09, intituled: The NPP Parliamentary Candidate, Yiadom Boakye-Boateng v 1. The Electoral Commissioner Per the Chairman Through the Regional Director, B/A Region 2.The NDC Parliamentary Candidate, Alhaji Collins Dauda 3. The District Electoral Officer, Asutifi District.

The ruling complained of was made in a suit brought by Mr. Yiadom Boakye-Boateng, the NPP Parliamentary candidate for the Asutifi South Constituency. He presented an election petition to the High Court, Sunyani, on 16th December 2008, complaining that the election results in his constituency had been tampered with and praying the court either to discount two ballot boxes, whose post-ballot custody and transmission arrangements to the collation centre, the petitioner maintained, left much to be desired, and declare the winner, or to annul the entire Parliamentary results of the constituency and order fresh Parliamentary elections. The petitioner on the same day as he filed his original petition filed an amended petition which spells out the petitioner’s prayer as:

“(a) An order of the Honourable Court declaring that the circumstance under which the two (2) ballot boxes of Twabidi No. 1 and 2 went to Kenyasi No. 1 and their contents swapped respectively is/was illegal and same is void.

An order of perpetual injunction restraining the Respondents from releasing the two ballot boxes (Parliamentary) to the other 66 ballot boxes to declare a winner.”

The petitioner also filed an application for an interim injunction, on 15th December 2008 seeking an order to restrain the R