Reinstate me or I'll sue – Edward Mahama to EC

Raymond Atuguba, lawyer for the disqualified presidential nominee of the People’s National Convention (PNC), Dr. Edward Mahama, has written to the Electoral Commission demanding immediate restoration of his client in the list of eligible presidential aspirants in the December 7 polls.

Dr. Atuguba has served notice he will head to court for redress if the Electoral Management Body fails to heed its request.

The EC has disqualified 12 presidential aspirants including Dr. Mahama from running in the race for the Flagstaff House.

According to the EC, it was unable to accept Dr. Mahama’s nominations because “many subscribers did not properly sign the forms,” adding that “thumbprints, signatures or marks were omitted all together.”

In a letter to the Commission Tuesday, Dr. Atuguba observed that the disqualification of his client was without basis, thus calling for his reinstatement within 48hours.

Also, the letter demands access to the nomination forms of all other candidates in order to point out similar minor errors that should have equally disqualified the aspirants of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the Convention People’s Party (CPP) and an independent candidate.

The letter argued that the EC acted unfairly in accepting the nomination forms of the four so called eligible aspirants.

The letter read in part: “If after 48 hours of receipt of this letter, you fail to commit unequivocally to meeting the above demands, we shall proceed and resort to other lawful processes or avenues to vindicate our client’s right without further recourse to you. It is the considered view of our client that the erosion of the constitutional right, human right, political right, legal right, right to administrative due process, and the compromise of our multiparty democratic dispensation by the purported rejection of the nomination forms of our client is not to be done lightly and on the basis of dubious fact and a far less than optimal interpretation of the law.

“Finally, in the event that any notice is required by any law or rule of practice for the institution of any legal proceedings against you, this letter shall constitute such notice.”

The EC is already facing lawsuit over a similar case from the Progressive People's Party (PPP) and the Great Consolidated Poppular Party (GCPP) and one other.