The Student Representative Council (SRC) elections at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA) have been suspended following an injunction filed by presidential hopeful, Bismark Abusa.
The injunction, served on the GIMPA SRC and the Electoral Commission, follows the disqualification of Abusa’s running mate, Sergio Thompson, by the Electoral Commission.
Two out of the three presidential aspirants scheduled to contest in the election originally slated for Wednesday, April 24, were disqualified by the Commission, citing alleged violations of the SRC Constitution.
Speaking to Citi News on Thursday, April 24, Shiraz Ibn Ziyaad, spokesperson for Bismark Abusa, accused the Electoral Commission of acting outside the bounds of the law.
He indicated that the legal action seeks to compel the court to put the electoral process on hold until the matter is fully resolved.
“We felt there are substantive issues to be decided by the court, either the Judicial Council or a court of competent jurisdiction. What happened was that my client’s running mate was disqualified because he held an executive position and did not resign from his position before the election.
“We all thought that the meaning of ‘executive position’ as used in the SRC Constitution requires an interpretation by the Judicial Council.
“Since they scheduled the election for today, it wouldn’t be possible for the Judicial Council to properly determine the meaning of ‘executive position’ as used within the SRC.
“So our injunction application is simply to maintain the status quo, to stay the proceedings and get the court to determine whether the elections can proceed. Otherwise, if the election were to proceed without the determination, it could lead to further complications,”he disclosed.
However, GIMPA management has assured students that it will address the recent developments in due course.