The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has dragged the Electoral Commission (EC) to court, accusing it of contempt for disregarding a High Court ruling related to the disputed Ablekuma North parliamentary election.
Also Read
According to NPP General Secretary Justin Frimpong Kodua, the court had directed the EC to collate the outstanding results and declare a winner, rather than organizing a rerun. Speaking on PM Express on Tuesday, July 8, Kodua stated that the EC’s decision to rerun voting in 19 polling stations contravenes this directive.
“That is why we are in court,” Kodua said. “The court’s directive is clear: collate and declare. The EC cannot unilaterally change that order.”
He warned that allowing the EC to act outside of court orders sets a dangerous precedent and undermines judicial authority.
“If the EC had issues with the ruling, the right thing to do was to go back to court, not to take matters into its own hands,” he added.
Legal Concerns and Electoral Tensions
Kodua also questioned the integrity of the EC’s decision-making process, especially after initial results were disrupted by violence and missing documents at the collation center. He claimed the EC relied on NPP’s scanned pink sheets to fill in gaps during the earlier collation.
“Our party collated all 281 pink sheets. We had our candidate at 34,613 votes against the NDC’s 34,199, a clear lead of 414 votes,” Kodua stated.
He expressed shock that the EC, after accepting those documents, has now reversed course by announcing a rerun in 19 polling stations.
Breakdown in Security and Trust
Kodua also criticized law enforcement agencies, alleging that the police failed to provide security during the initial collation, contributing to the confusion. “Are we to believe the police’s failure to protect the process was politically motivated?” he asked.
NPP Rejects Rerun Plans
The EC had announced the rerun of voting in 19 polling stations on Friday, July 11, citing unresolved discrepancies. However, the NPP says it will not participate, demanding full compliance with the existing court order. “We will not legitimize an unlawful rerun. The EC must obey the court,” Kodua said firmly.
As tensions rise in Ablekuma North, all eyes are on the court’s next move and whether the rerun will go ahead as scheduled.
