The Techiman High Court has dismissed a parliamentary petition filed by Christopher Beyere Baasongti, a National Democratic Congress (NDC) member and the NDC’s parliamentary candidate for the 2024 election, against Martin Adjei Mensah Korsah, a New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Techiman South.
The Electoral Commission (EC) announced the Techiman South constituency election results in its gazette on January 7, 2025, and Christopher Beyere Baasongti filed his parliamentary election petition on January 27, 2025.
But on January 31, 2025, Martin Adjei-Mensah Korsah, via his lawyer Gary Nimako Marfo, submitted a move contesting the legality of the parliamentary petition along with an affidavit.
He basically argued that the petitioner failed to provide security for cost between the time the gazette notification was published and the petition was filed because no application was filed to determine the amount that would be required as security for cost within the legally allotted 21 days.
Martin Adjei-Mensah Korsah additionally argued that his election petition, filed on January 27, 2025, should be thrown aside by the High Court since the petitioner failed to provide security for cost within the 21 days following the publication of the gazette notification.
Mr. Adjei-Mensah Korsah filed the motion on February 17, 2025. In its decision to dismiss the petition, the High Court stated that the election petition filed by Christopher Beyere, the NDC Parliamentary Candidate, contesting the election of Martin Adjei Mensah Korsah was void because the petitioner had not applied for security for cost to be determined and paid within the legally mandated time frame and in accordance with section 18(2) of the Representation of the People Law, 1992 (PNDCL 284).
The NPP’s Director of legal affairs, Gary Nimako Marfo, represented Martin Adjei-Mensah Korsah in court, while Abdul-Hameed Zakaria represented the petitioner, Christopher Beyere Baasongti.
