Published November 3, 2024
On 24th September 2024, the Electoral Commission of the Ghana Bar Association (“GBA”) invited nominations for various positions in the Young Lawyers, Women and In- house fora of the Ghana Bar Association.
Prince E. Ganaku, a private legal practitioner was one of the dozen lawyers who responded with an interest to contest for the presidency of the Young Lawyers’ Forum.
On 23rd October 2024, however, the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission of GBA, Mrs. Patience Ella Diaba informed him by email that his nomination has been disqualified on grounds that, contrary to Article 27(4) and 42 of the GBA Constitution, two of Prince Ganaku’s supporters are not members of the Young Lawyers Forum.
Legal Challenges against the decision
Naturally aggrieved by this decision, Prince Ganaku triggered an internal appeal process to challenge the decision of the Electoral Commission pursuant to Article 33 of the GBA Constitution.
However, realizing the elections would proceed despite the pendency of his appeal, Prince Ganaku made an application to the High Court for an interim injunction against the Ghana Bar Association.
Applicant’s arguments for the Application for Injunction
In support of his application, Prince Ganaku inter alia argued that his legal right to a fair nomination process and meaningful appeal, as enshrined in Article 33 of the GBA Constitution, requires protection as these rights will be irretrievably lost if the election proceeds on November 1, 2024.
That he was likely to suffer more damage since a continuance of the elections would render the entire appeal process nugatory and invariably impact his right of appeal.
He also intimated that, under the given circumstances, damages would be wholly inadequate to compensate him for any lost opportunity to contest for the elections.
Ruling of the Court
The High Court presided over by His Lordship Ali Baba Abature hearing the ex-parte application for interim injunction granted same. By the said order of the Honourable Court, the Ghana Bar Association has been restrained from holding the elections for the Young Lawyers’ Forum, which was slated for 1st November 2024.
Typically interim injunction order subsists for a maximum of ten ( 10 ) days after which the applicant would file an interlocutory application on notice to the other party. In this case, the ex-parte injunction order is to last until 10th November, 2024. It is expected that Prince Ganaku will file another application for injunction but on notice to the Defendant for the injunction application to be determined on merits; failure which the interim injunction order shall expire.
Meanwhile, it may be instructive to state that for practitioners and students of law, this decision of the High Court for the ex-parte injunction order to be in force for ten days until it is repeated on notice to the Defendant will appear somewhat different from and confusing relative to the recent decision in the case of Alexander Afenyo Markin v The Speaker of Parliament and Attorney-General: here the apex court granted and made an ex-parte injunction order pending the final determination of the matter without notice to and without hearing the Speaker of Parliament.
As the plot thickens, stay tuned for further updates.
Nana Nti Ofori-Debrah Esq contributed to this article.
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