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A senior law professor at the University of Ghana, Legon, says citizens have 21 days to file a lawsuit to challenge the outcome of the upcoming elections.
This, according to Dr. Aziz Basit Abdul Bamba, is in line with the provisions of the State laws.
“According to Article 64 (1) of the Constitution, a person challenging the election of a person elected as president must file a petition within 21 days after the declaration of the president-elect,” said Dr. Bamba.
His comment is part of the discussions on how to speed up the processes to resolve electoral disputes after the December 7 elections.
During JoyNews’ discussion on ‘The Law’, the Senior Lecturer stated that the law has been designed in such a way as to guarantee a speedy trial.
Dr. Bamba said that when a petitioner presents a case, the law requires that the petition be delivered to the respondent.
However, the law is also silent on the number of days set for trial and this often explains the delays in such cases, a situation that, according to him, needs to be addressed in the future.
“The rules are silent on the number of days for the hearing, so it appears that it is left to the discretion of the court,” he said.
What happens after a case is filed?
Dr. Bamba said that respondents have three days to appear and show that they have received the request.
In a case in which the petition is not served on the defendants within said two-day period, “the petitioner could request that the petition be served on the defendant in a different way that the court can notify,” he added.
It also stated that the defendants after appearing to show that they received the petition have 7 days to file a response in response to the petition issues.
“The court is supposed to leave the case for trial within 15 days. Then there will be a hearing and once the hearing is complete, the matter will be postponed for trial and according to the rules, the supreme court must issue its ruling, “he said.
Speaking further, he criticized opinions calling for a reduction in the number of days set to present a case.
Dr. Bamba argued that the 21-day period should be maintained because it gives persons intending to contest the outcome of an election sufficient time to reason about their case.