Mr Bernard Morna, General Secretary of the People’s National Convention (PNC) on Thursday said the Supreme Court under the current constitution did not have the backing to declare anybody president of the country.

He said the Electoral Commission (EC) was the only constitutional body mandated under Ghana’s 1992 constitution, to conduct and declare presidential elections and advised Ghanaians to allay fears that the ongoing 2012 election petition could be declared to favour the petitioners.

Mr Morna was addressing a public forum in Tamale organised by the Coalition of Ghanaian Voters (COGVO), a civil society group formed to educate Ghanaians on ways to protect their votes.

The forum, which was on the theme: “Respect my vote and give Ghana peace” have members from some political parties including the NDC, PNC, United Front Party (UFP) and other civil society groups and was also meant to preach peace messages to Ghanaians to remain peaceful during and after the court ruling.

Key members of the coalition include, Dr Clement Apaak, formerly with the Forum for Governance and Justice (FGJ), Mr Kofi Wayo, Bernard Morna, Chris Ackummey and Akwasi Addai Odike of the United Front Party (UFP).

Mr Morna explained that, what the court could do was to give recommendations, if any, to the Electoral Commission to implement, “But the court cannot reverse the decision of the EC and declare anybody the winner of the 2012 elections”.

He said Ghana was enjoying peace, and claimed that the petitioners were trying to make the country ungovernable saying, “We were all in Ghana when membership of the petitioners promised ‘Afghanistan’ in Ghana if they failed to win the 2012 elections, and this is what we are experiencing today.”

He said it was unheard of for anyone, who genuinely won elections, not to call for a recount of the votes but rather calling for annulment of some votes to declare them winners, saying, “We all know that John Dramani Mahama and the NDC won the 2012 elections genuinely”.

Mr Morna said: “What the NPP needs to do is to accept defeat just as Kufuor did in 1996 and later campaigned vigorously to win the 2000 and 2004 elections.

Dr Clement Apaak, a leading member of the coalition said; “It is unjust, unfair and wicked for the petitioners to call for the cancellation of more than four million votes and declare the first petitioner, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo winner”.

He said John Dramani Mahama, regardless of his ethnic background and tribe, also deserved to rule the country and that the president winning eight of the 10 regions was a manifestation that the electorate had confidence in the NDC and its candidate.

He claimed that the petitioners were acting in bad faith since their public claim that the EC had stolen some votes from the NPP and had given it to President John Mahama could not be proved at the ongoing hearing at the Supreme Court.

He said the NDC genuinely won the 2012 elections and called on the NPP to accept defeat to let peace prevail in the country and that the court case was a waste of the nation’s resources and time.

Mr Colson Akanbasiam, local convener of the forum, in a welcome address, appealed to Ghanaians to exercise restraint and wait for the outcome of the court ruling since violence would disturb the peace of the country and would scare investors off.

Mr Akanbasiam said if the elections were fraught with irregularities, how could Mr Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie, NPP General Secretary call on NPP supporters to dress in white and go to church because the NPP had won the elections”.