What are The Eleven (11) Meanings of what the Supreme Court said in the Abu Ramadan Case last week? - What are The Eleven (11) Meanings of what the Supreme Court said in the Abu Ramadan Case last week?

11. Eleventh and finally, the Supreme Court disapproves of judges making Public Comments on cases.

The judges who sat last Thursday, and who signed the Orders issued by the Supreme Court, excluded Justices Akamba and Dotse. I do not believe, as has been claimed, that the reason why Justice Dotse did not sit was because Justice Akamba has retired and so Justice Dotse had to be taken out also, in order to achieve an odd number on the panel. This is because a retiring judge may continue to sit as a judge to finish all cases (s)he has started for up to about 6 months.  

The more plausible explanation for Justice Dotse’s absence from the Bench on Thursday is that he either recused himself or was asked to recuse himself given his earlier Public Comment on the case. We need to congratulate Justice Dotse and/or the Chief Justice for ensuring this. If we are to depend on the Supreme Court to hold our Nation together post election, then our judges must always act above reproach. 

Some have argued that all this would not be happening if the EC had simply compiled a new Voters Register. The assumption here is that a new Register will automatically be more credible and cleaner. This is absolutely not the case. A "new" register is totally different from a clean and credible Register. A clean and credible Register is simply not easy to achieve anywhere in the world. If we start the compilation of a new Register today, it is still possible that the NDC will bring in people, including minors, from Togo and the NPP from Cote D'Ivoire to register. If this is done in their respective strongholds, where everyone, including EC officials, Presiding Officers, and polling station agents, is a member of their party, we may achieve an even dirtier and non-credible Register. So simply doing a new Register in the old way is a complete waste of national resources. 

In conclusion and for the long-term, I would suggest that we start linking our different personal and personnel databases, and there are over 100 databases in Ghana to work with, to create a national database, and use that as a control for all registrations for the purpose of voting. Then prepare a new Register with the control on. The control is a first logical step before a reasonably credible and clean Voters Register can be achieved. 

Dr. Raymond Akongburo ATUGUBA, the writer is a Senior Lecturer, School of Law, University of Ghana & Team Leader, Law and Development Associates

27th June, 2016