TEMPLE OF JUSTICE, Monrovia- Campaign for the December 8 Midterm Senatorial elections and two Bi-elections in Montserrado County District #9 and Sinoe County District #2 cannot be launched as planned today, Saturday October 10, 2020, due to a Supreme Court Stay Order prompted by a Writ filed by the opposition Collaborating Political Parties (CPP).
Recently, the Justice in Chambers had declined the Writ of Mandamus. A writ of Mandamus is a court order compelling someone to execute a duty that they are legally obligated to complete.
But now, the Supreme Court Justice in Chambers, Sie-A-Nyene G. Yuoh has at the weekend ordered the National Elections Commission through its Chairperson Davidetta Browne Lansannah and all commissioners and authorities responsible for elections matter serving under the chairperson and authorities to immediately put halt of publishing the listing of candidates following a writ of Mandamus filed by Mulbah S. Jackollie a senatorial aspirant through it’s legal Cllr. Jallah Barbu.
The order issued by the Supreme Court Chambers states:
You are hereby commanded to notify the NEC of the Republic of Liberia by and thru its chairperson and all commissioners and authorities responsible for elections matter serving under her leadership and their authority of the republic of Liberia, respondent in the above entitled cause of action to appear by filing their returns before her Hon. Sie-A-Nyene G. Yuoh Associate Chambers Justice of the Supreme Court on or before the October 14, 2020 at 9am to show cause why the petitioner’s petition prayed for should not be granted.
You are further commanded to instruct the respondent (NEC) to file their returns to the writ of Mandamus in the office of the Supreme Court clerk on or before Oct 14, 2020.
Meanwhile, the respondent (NEC) has been ordered by the highest court in Liberia to halt all proceedings and or actions on the listing and publication of candidates name pending outcome of the hearing on the matter.
The order further says: As to when and how you shall have served the said writ, you shall make known by filing your official returns hereto on the back of the original copy of the writ.
The CPP’s twenty-nine count petition for writ of Mandamus, the CPP pointed out that the ECOWAS report states that the provisional Registration Roll displayed at the registration centers throughout the country claimed a good total 2,182,956 registered voters.
Count eight of the petition speaks about the ECOWAS report or recommendation, which says before the final roll was published, a total of 170,000 suspected duplicate voters extracted, 4,567 of which were confirmed to report a total of 2,183,629 voters were published on the final voters roll, the FRR 30 days to the election on September 11,2017.
Given these facts, if 170,000 suspected duplicates were removed from the provisional Registration Roll, the total number of voters on the FRR ought to have been 2,012,956, and 2,183,629 voters as reported by NEC.
The ECOWAS recommendation Captured by the CPP in count eight of their motion said hence the conclusion is compelling and inescapable that the 170,000 suspected duplicates were never extracted from the voters roll and roll and remains there up to date, rendering the FRR defective and unfit to lay a basis for elections.
Count nine of the CPP’s petition that ECOWAS report also started that the time it gained access to the NEC data base Dec 12, 2017, the total number of registered voters was 2,183,629 and this equals the total registered votes declared by the NEC (FFR total),which also equals the total OMR forms said have been returned from the field and handed over to the data center for processing. Report by Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gmail.com