Anthony Abayifa Karbo
The National Youth Organiser of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Anthony Abayifa Karbo, has described the performance of Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, chief witness in the petition filed against the results of the 2012 presidential elections, as so good that it is giving lawyers of the respondents “nightmares.”
Tony Lithur, lawyer for President John Mahama – whose election victory is being challenged – has been cross-examining Dr Bawumia, the NPP 2012 Vice Presidential candidate about evidence the three petitioners –Nana Akufo-Addo, Dr Bawumia and Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey – have submitted to the court to buttress their claim that there were irregularities in the election which negatively affected the NPP.
President John Dramani Mahama, the Electoral Commission and the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) are respondents to the petition, being heard by a nine-member Supreme Court panel headed by Justice William Atuguba.
While the jury is still out on the ongoing proceedings, supporters of the NDC and NPP have hailed the performances of Mr Lithur and Dr Bawumia respectively, citing them as evidence of their impending victory.
Speaking on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem morning show on Tuesday April 23, 2013, Anthony Karbo said the former Deputy Governor of Bank of Ghana had put up an impressive performance so far, to the chagrin of the lawyers of the respondents, including Mr Tsatsu Tsikata, and this was forcing them to revise their notes on how to proceed with the case.
“If you get a stupid witness in the box, that’s a field day for a lawyer who is doing cross examination. But here, you don’t have a stupid or an idiot person in the box o, you have somebody who has something strong in his coconut and it’s very difficult to break through,” he insisted.
“When you have a tough witness, an intelligent witness, a witness who knows what he is doing, all the responses are consistent.
“I’m telling you, Bawumia is a major nightmare to the NDC lawyers and the legal team, and I can’t wait to see Tsatsu Tsikata cross examine Dr Bawumia. I can’t wait.”
Karbo, who failed in his bid to win the Lawra parliamentary seat in the 2012 election, pledged that the NPP was ready to accept the verdict of the court in order to “help grow Ghana’s democracy.”
“We in the NPP are very, very, very ready for the verdict of this court. If this court rules and that NPP has won the NDC will step down. If this court rules that Mahama has been duly elected and there were no problems whatsoever NPP will concede and move on. It is in the interest of our democracy.
“So far, if you watch what has been happening, the composure of Nana Akufo-Addo, he is indeed a diplomat, a statesman par excellence. Since this case went to court, the man hasn’t spoken; he has kept his cool, his hope and trust in the Supreme Court.”