Tsatsu's problems as I see it

Court Observer

Facts: he does not have any facts. His client (NDC) has not been accused of anything. Only the EC can address the issues raised by the petitioners. NDC cannot expain why there are Overvotes, GROPAAvotes, under-the-table votes, etc.

Witness: He faces a witness who has studied the issues more than he has. Bawumia also appears smarter, younger and sharper. Tsatsu is right in describing Bawumia as Dr. Pink Sheet.

Experience: He is not a trial lawyer and does not understand election law. Further, He has been away from the teaching of law for decades.

Preparation: He lacks preparation. In too many instances, he is being coached by Lithur as to how to ask questions and even tender evidence.

Purpose: His cross examination is purposeless. Evidence of that is taking over 5 days. Lawyers who know what they want, go in ask those questions very quickly and are done. This is Ghana but nowhere else will a Judge give you 5 days for one witness, when the average trial last 5 days.

Assumptions: His assumptions about cross examinations are almost at the layman's level. Every trial lawyer knows that not every mistake by a witness is probative. But he is spending days pointing out exhibits that have been mislabelled after Lithur had spent days on the same issue. In most jurisdictions, the Judge would have said, let us relabel the exhibits and move on. But here we are on the 9th day of talking about labelling, which has nothing to do with the issues.

Etiquette: In cross examination, you only ask questions that you know or can predict the answers. You get rid of good witnesses as quickly as possible. You quit as soon as you have made your key points. Tsatsu does not know these basics or he has forgotten them. He has asked too many questions that has allowed Bawumia to score easy goals. He has not recognized that Bawumia is smarter than he is, which has allowed Tsatsu's emptiness to be exposed for 5 days. And he cannot quit because he has not scored any goals (see expectations).

Expectations: He is laboring from unreasonable expectations. Of course, in Ghana we create too many luminaries and expect magic from them. Then the luminary puts himself under pressure to meet the unrealistic expectation. Tsatsu is stressed, his questions are laughable, the got you moment that he wants for his fanatics will not come and he continues to look for it. He continues to look for that elusive goal.
 

Court Observer

(Sent by Kwaku Azar)

May 06, 2013