MP for the Ashaiman Constituency, Ernest Henry Norgbey, has withdrawn an application that was pending before the Human Rights High Court presided over by Justice Gifty Agyei Addo seeking to injunct the EC from abiding by its decision not to release procurement information under the Right to Information law.
The MP filed an application at the Human Rights Court seeking documents regarding the EC and Thales Contract under the Right to Information Act. The EC filed a response and argued that the action is not warranted since Parliament has not fixed the fees to be paid for the release of information under the Right to Information Act.
Mr Norgbey then filed an application for Interim (Mandatory) Injunction for the information required under the main action. The Electoral Commission and its lawyers again opposed this application on the ground that a determination of the matter by way of injunction determines the main action and renders the main action nugatory.
The Applicant not satisfied with the turn of events then yet again filed an application for interrogatories seeking the self same documents and answers to questions in the main action. The EC again filed an affidavit opposing same that its determination one way or the other renders the main action nugatory.
When the matter came up for hearing today the 2nd of June 2020, Justice Gifty Adjei Addo’s Court raised the issue of the two applications determining the main action and that she was minded to hear the main action rather than the interrogatories and the injunction application as she agreed with the issues raised in the EC’s affidavits in opposition.
Lawyer for the applicant, Dr. Abdul Bassit Bamba, withdrew the interrogatories and the injunction applications and same was struck out as withdrawn by the Court.
The court subsequently ordered both parties to file their written submissions regarding their respective positions in the main action within 10 days and adjourned the matter to the 18th June 2020 for hearing. There was no order as to cost.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM/Wilberforce Asare
