The High Court in Ho has rejected two applications submitted by the petitioners in the SALL Election Petition seeking to retract a previously filed application for judgment on admissions and a substantive application for judgment on admissions made by the Electoral Commission.
The petitioners, representing five individuals from Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe, and Lolobi (SALL), have filed a petition with the Ho High Court, seeking various declarations, including the invalidation of John Peter Amewu’s election as the Member of Parliament for Hohoe.
During the court proceedings, an interruption occurred due to a late application from John Peter Amewu to enter a late appearance and halt the court’s ruling. Although the court granted the application for late entry, it dismissed the request to delay the court’s ruling.
Subsequently, the petitioners, represented by their lawyer Tsatsu Tsikata, filed a motion to withdraw their application for judgment based on the admissions made by the EC. However, the court dismissed this motion on Wednesday, February 7, 2024.
The court ruled that the admissions made by the EC only provide grounds for issuing orders, not judgments. It then dismissed the application for judgment based on admissions and adjourned the case to March 15, 2024, to provide further directions for legal arguments or a full trial to determine the merits of the petitioners’ case and the reliefs sought.
Additionally, the court rejected two separate applications by counsels John Peter Amewu and Benedict Kofitse for costs of GH¢20,000 each for the dismissed applications.
