General News of Wednesday, 24 April 2013

Source: Radio XYZ

Mahama won the elections but... - Bawumia

The Chief witness in the election petition case has admitted that the first Respondent John Dramani Mahama won the 2012 Presidential elections resoundingly.

Answering a question posed by the first respondent’s lawyer, Tony Lithur, that President Mahama played no part in alleged irregularities and malpractices during the 2012 elections and won resoundingly, Dr. Bawumia stated yes but with assistance with the alleged violations and irregularities that occurred.

“The first respondent just happened to be the beneficiary of these violations, malpractices and irregularities...” Dr. Bawumia said.

There were intermittent moments of give-and-take between the two gentlemen at the Supreme Court on Wednesday. There were also moments of verbal jabs and comic relief amidst the cross examination.

The NPP’s 2012 Presidential Candidate, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo (First Respondent), together with Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and the Party’s National Chairman Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey is in court challenging the validity of the election results as declared by the country’s electoral commission after the December 7 and 8 general elections.

The petitioners argue that the elections were fraught with unpardonable flaws which must not be left uninvestigated.

They accuse the incumbent party, National Democratic Congress of conspiring with the EC to steal the elections for President John Mahama.

They therefore, are praying the Court to set aside and nullify the EC’s results which declared President Mahama as winner of the presidential poll.

Tony Lithur has since ended his cross examination and has been taken over by the counsel for the Electoral Commission, Quarshie Idun.