Last week, we told you about the Orlando Habet's election petition that is currently in front of Justice Hafiz-Bertram against Elvin Penner contesting his legitimacy as the Cayo Northeast Area Representative.
As we reported, in the preliminary hearing for the leave to bring the election petition, Penner's attorney, Rodwell Williams was able to argue successfully to get the major part of Habet's claim of bribery struck out of court.
Habet's lawyers, Said Musa and company, only have the recount grounds which they can use in the election petition.
Last week, Musa then filed for leave to appeal Justice Hafiz-Bertram's decision to strike out the bribery, and again, they were unsuccessful when Justice Hafiz-Bertram refused to grant it.
Well, Musa refused to let the matter rest, and today, they came with another play.
Williams had filed a motion to strike out the election petition on recount grounds, which would effectively end Habet's legitimacy contention, and that matter was to be heard today.
Instead, the court started to hear a motion which Musa filed, in which he wanted to have his own petition stayed!
If you can follow it, the significance is that by, the election petition rules, only the respondent - meaning Rodwell Williams - could apply for that stay.
It seemed like Musa and company were railroading their own election petition, but Musa submitted that the recount ground is not the election petition that they really want to hear.
He says that they are determined to get the bribery grounds in, and that's why he asked the court to stay the election petition's proceedings until the bribery matter is heard and determined in the Appeal Court, which they have filed for in the face of the Supreme Court's refusal.
Justice Hafiz-Bertram eventually refused the stay application from Musa, and the strike out matter was finally started this evening, and it's slated to continue tomorrow.
This means that the actual election petition hasn't even started - and we spoke to Musa about the very circuitous matter outside of court. He said that it is clear that this matter is going to the Appeal court for a final determination - which means it's going to be marathon, and not a sprint like we might hope for.
Said Musa, Attorney for Orlando Habet
"The judge ruled that she will not grant a stay on our application pending the appeal and then she went on to consider the motion to dismiss the truncated appeal of a petition (if I may call it that). That is the matter still being considered and will continue tomorrow."
"Basically where we are gentlemen is that seems that we are heading to the court of appeals. Whatever the final ruling is of this judge and pretty much that is what both sides realize now that the matter will have to be determine by the court of appeal one way or the other, whether or not there will be a full petition including the bribery charges or not."
"It has not affected us in terms of our right to proceed with the appeal, but it certainly will affect us in whether or not at this stage by tomorrow whether we will have any petition to proceed with."
"Here again, I must repeat, the bottom-line is that this matter is heading for the court of appeal to make a final determination."
"We are appealing the refusal of the judge to grant us leave to appeal on the application for the petition. So basically the hurdle that we will have to cross is that constitutional provision which deals with no right of appeal in these election petitions where leave is refused."
"There is an interesting situation we are dealing with. Unchartered waters when it comes to election petitions because here you have a situation where the representation of the people's act clearly allows an appeal to the court of appeal on a point of law if the election petition itself is dismiss. But yet it is silent on whether or not you can appeal the refusal of leave whereas the constitution mentions that there is no right to appeal where leave is refuse."
"What we will be arguing is of course at that stage will be that despite this what is called an "ouster clause" in the constitution, because there was a complete (in our view) wrong interpretation of the law regarding to this issue about time for the filing of election petition regarding bribery. That is really what is the gist of this whole case."
The strike out application from Rodwell Williams will continue tomorrow at 2 in the afternoon.
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