According to Dr. Dominic Ayine, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) representative for Bolgatanga East, a lawsuit brought against John Mahama to prevent him from running in the general elections of 2024 is without merit.
He declared that the lawsuit filed by Ken Kuranchie, Editor of the Daily Searchlight, to prevent the NDC flagbearer from running in the 2024 elections would not stand.
Speaking to Citi FM in Accra, Dr. Dominic Ayine, a former attorney general, asserted that John Mahama’s eligibility is clearly stated in the constitution.
“He has planted confusion in his own mind and the Supreme Court jurisdiction is not needed in this one,” he said.
He also questioned Mr. Kuranchie’s comprehension of the constitutional clause governing a candidate’s eligibility to serve as president, who is the editor-in-chief of the Daily Searchlight newspaper.
“I have read through the writ and to be honest with you, aside from the fact that it is poorly drafted, it is a non-issue because if you read the language of the constitution, it is very clear that a person is entitled to two terms when elected president of the republic, and now he is saying that the fact that the constitution says that you cannot go more than two terms, then it means that the person who has done one term cannot be re-elected into office again.
“If the makers of the Constitution had wanted to limit such persons from seeking re-election, then they would have said that a person is entitled to not more than two consecutive terms so basically what the plaintiff is seeking to do is to invite the Supreme Court to read the word consecutive into the language of the constitution and I think it is not something the Supreme Court will be very willing to do even though I cannot say with exactitude.”
On June 12, Mr. Kuranchie filed a lawsuit at the Supreme Court arguing that the former president is ineligible to run in the 2024 presidential election.
Mr. Kuranchie is requesting a declaration that Article 66 (1) of the 1992 Constitution, when properly and truthfully interpreted, clearly states that the length of a presidential term is four years.
A statement that, according to a true and accurate interpretation of Sections 66(1) and (2) of the 1992 Constitution, the incumbent president must be the one running for reelection.
An affirmation that a former president of Ghana is ineligible to run for office in Ghana based on a true and proper interpretation of Article 62 of the 1992 Constitution.
