The Tamale High Court has ordered a rerun of the 2024 parliamentary election in the Kpandai constituency, citing significant irregularities that undermined the credibility of the results. Delivering the ruling on Monday, His Lordship Justice Emmanuel Brew Plange directed the Electoral Commission (EC) to conduct a fresh poll within 30 days.
The decision follows a petition filed by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate and former Member of Parliament, Daniel Nsala Wakpal, who challenged the election of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) candidate and incumbent MP, Matthew Nyindam. Wakpal argued that the December 7, 2024 election was fraught with irregularities and breaches of electoral laws, particularly in the recording and collation of results.
Central to the petition were alleged inconsistencies in Form 8A, which is the official Statement of Polls (pink sheet) for parliamentary elections, across 41 polling stations out of the total 152 in the constituency. The petitioner contended that these inconsistencies constituted a violation of Regulations 39 and 43 of the Public Elections Regulations, 2020 (C I 127), and materially affected the outcome of the election.
Wakpal further accused the EC district electoral officer of unlawfully relocating the constituency collation centre without notifying the candidates or their agents. He argued that this action denied him crucial rights during the collation process, including the opportunity to request a recount or challenge irregular entries, as provided under Ghana’s electoral laws.
The petition also highlighted the tension that erupted on election day and during collation. Reports presented in court suggested confusion and disorder at the collation centre. There were claims of ballot materials being destroyed, biometric verification devices being removed, and security officers being deployed to restore calm amid allegations of vote rigging.
After examining the evidence, Justice Plange concluded that the election was not conducted in compliance with electoral regulations and that the violations significantly affected the integrity of the results. He subsequently annulled the declaration of Matthew Nyindam as MP and ordered the EC to conduct a fresh parliamentary election for Kpandai within 30 days.
In the contested results that have now been set aside, Nyindam secured 27,947 votes, representing 53.47 percent, while Wakpal received 24,213 votes, representing 46.33 percent. A third candidate, Donkor Eric Nipani of the APC, polled 104 votes, representing 0.20 percent. This brought the margin between the NPP and NDC candidates to 3,734 votes.
Following the court’s ruling, lawyers for Nyindam filed an application for a stay of execution, pending an appeal, signaling their intention to challenge the decision. However, counsel for Wakpal welcomed the judgment and described it as straightforward and necessary to uphold electoral integrity. He insisted that the EC district officer acted outside the law when he relocated the collation centre without proper notice, depriving his client of key participatory rights.
The Electoral Commission is now required to return to the constituency and organize a fresh parliamentary election.
