Judge Warns NDC To Settle Case

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Created on Wednesday, 15 October 2014 00:00

Judge Warns NDC To Settle Case

15 October 2014

JUSTICE Jacob Bonoo, a Kumasi High Court judge hearing the case brought against the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has reiterated his call on the parties involved in the suit to make strenuous efforts to settle the matter out of court because the consequences of his judgment, he asserted, would have far-reaching implication on the party’s unity.

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Making the remarks after some prolonged legal arguments between lawyers of the plaintiff and the defendants on the substantive case yesterday, the presiding judge observed that the interest of the parties would be better served on amicable settlement of the case, and not through litigation.

He said the parties would have nobody to blame but themselves for any eventuality, warning that that judgment of the case would cause division among members of the NDC - no matter where it falls.

Linus Njonolah, a member of the NDC, last month secured an injunction at the court to restrain the current national executives from spearheading the process of fresh elections for national and regional officers, questioning their authority.

The plaintiff has accused officers of the Ashanti Regional Executive Committee and the national officers of having overstayed their mandated tenure of office.

According to Linus, as contained in the constitution of the NDC, the executives could not lawfully act for and on behalf of the first defendant without a valid renewal of their respective terms of office through elections.

The NDC is expected to conclude the ongoing electoral process from branch to national level by the close of this month; but it appears the ruling party may not succeed because of the litigation, causing a stumbling block to the process.

First Legal Hurdle Cleared

The party scaled its first legal hurdle after it won the preliminary objection raised about the capacity of its counsel to represent it (party) in court.

Counsel for the plaintiff, Felix Datsomor, had raised issues relative to the absence of the law firm’s registration number on the NDC’s applications to the court that sought to set aside the injunction of Mr. Linus Njonolah.

The plaintiff’s counsel argued that the absence of the law firm’s registration number invalidated the document, and could therefore not be admitted in court, and prayed for it to be rejected.

NDC Application

During yesterday’s proceedings, counsel for the NDC, Nana Akwasi Boatey, said the suit by the plaintiff was “incompetent”, having been brought in a wrong capacity since the action was directed through the party’s national chairman.

He argued that the NDC as a political party, is an artificial human being that could sue and be sued as contained in Section 4 of the Political Parties’ Act (Act 574).

Counsel for the defendants intimated that Rule 4 of CI 47 also touched on legal capacity of the NDC as a public institution, and noted that the first defendant (NDC) – having the capacity to act – could not be compelled through its chairman to do something unwilling.

But lawyer for the plaintiff, Felix Datsomor, vehemently opposed the motion and branded it as mischievous and superfluous, only attempting to thwart justice on a mere technical ground.

According to him, suing an artificial human being through its acting officers did not amount to legal error, and if so, the said error could not be a fatal one to dismiss a suit for justice.

Source: Daily Guide/Ghana