'AMICUS LAWYER' FILES FOR REVIEW

Benoni Tonny Amekudzi 

Posted on: www.dailyguideghana.com

By William Yaw Owusu

Friday May 24, 2013.

A staunch member of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) Benoni Tonny Amekudzi who sprang a surprise at the Supreme Court recently when he attempted to be part of the Presidential Election Petition as friend of the court has filed an application for review before the court.

Amekudzi, who is said to be a ‘returnee’ lawyer from America, was thrown out by the court on the basis that his application seeking to be friend of the court (Amicus Curiae) was not properly before it.

The application was slated for yesterday when the 1^st and 3^rd respondents through NDC General-Secretary Johnson Asiedu-Nketiah mounted the witness’ box to open their defense but the court adjourned the process until Monday May 27 for it to be moved.

However, in view of Monday being a statutory public holiday, Justice William Atuguba, chairing the nine-member panel that had thrown out the application, said it would rather be moved on Tuesday May 28.

It is recalled that on March 5, 2013, a strange spectacle unfolded at the Supreme Court when Mr. Amekudzi sprang up with his application.

Lawyers on both side of the petition have barely finished introducing themselves when an unknown lawyer; Benoni Tonny Amekudzi sprang to the floor to lay a motion before the court.

In a loud voice, spiced with ample gesticulation and an exotic accent, Mr. Amekudzi, without going through the standard procedures, launched himself at the bewildered panel and tried to move a motion to the effect that a sitting President cannot be sued or joined as a defendant or a respondent to a lawsuit or petition.

It was unclear how he sneaked himself into the front row where the case is being argued, as he is usually spotted sitting behind the NDC executives and having the same accreditation as the NDC members.

When he sprang to his feet, lawyers from all sides of the divide looked at him in disbelief for such an audacious diversion of attention from the matter currently being argued in court.

He did so by circumventing the standard processes of filing for such motions in the Supreme Court. In the Supreme Court, the standard procedure is for such an application to be accompanied by an affidavit. Mr. Amekudzi had none.

The bewildered court audience shifted uneasily and murmured in amusement at the motion that Mr. Amekudzi was seeking to smuggle into the fray. The lawyer claim he was filing as Amicus Curiae (Friend of the Court) because his motion was in the supreme interest of the general public.

Members from both legal teams of the petitioners and respondents were asked their views on the on Mr. Amekudzi’s intervention.

 Counsel for the petitioners, Philip Addison said “we do not think that this application is properly before the court….An Amicus Curiae brief is supposed to assist the court in determining a matter that is of public interest, in this instance, this application has been brought in support of the First Respondent and therefore it ceases to be an Amicus Curiae brief. It is partisan, it is intended to aid one side and that cannot be  an Amicus Curiae, for that reason alone, we pray that this application be dismissed.”

Curiously, all the feuding of both the petitioners and the respondents overwhelmingly agreed with Philip Addison, views. Counsel for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Tsatsu Tsikata described the gate-crashing lawyer as an “Inter-meddler” who should not be allowed in the proceedings.

The Dismissal

Consequently, the Supreme Court threw out the motion arguing that since a petition is filed before a winner in a presidential election is sworn in, he could be sued in an election petition.

 Reading the ruling, the Presiding Judge of the Panel, Justice William Atuguba said “We are of the opinion that the intervention cannot properly be termed an application to present an Amicus Curiae brief, it being in support of one party represented already by counsel…” He quoted Article 64 of the 1992 constitution and Constitutional Instrument 16 (CI. 16) relating to the application.

“As much as an election petition in any rate can be commenced before the person becomes President and being sworn into office, the application is therefore dismissed,” Justice Atuguba concluded.

Upon hearing the ruling, Mr. Amekudzi having burnt up his gusto, stood up and bowed before he left the front row to the back row of the court.

On Tuesday May 28 will have his day once more in the Supreme court in front of live television while Ghanaians wait to see if he will be second time lucky with his curiae brief application.