Six NPP candidates sue EC over parliamentary election result delays

In an application for judicial review in the form of a mandamus, six New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary candidates for the just ended 2024 general elections have asked the High Court to order the Electoral Commission (EC) to promptly compile and announce the results of the parliamentary elections in the constituencies in which they ran.

Through their lawyer, Gary Nimako Marfo, the NPP parliamentary candidate submitted the application in two different filings. These are Martin Kweku Adjei-Mensah Korsah, Techiman South; Nana Akua Owusu Afriye, Ablekuma North; Frank Annoh-Dompreh, Nsawam-Adoagyiri; Patrick Yaw Boamah, Okaikwei Central; Charles Forson, parliamentary candidate for Tema Central; and Eric Nana Agyemang Prempeh, Ahafo Ano North.

According to a report by asaaseradio.com, in essence, the six parliamentary candidates are requesting two directives from the High Court of general jurisdiction.

 First is “an order of mandamus directed at the Electoral Commission (EC) (Respondent) compelling it to collate and declare the results and winner of the Tema Central constituency Parliamentary election held on 7 December 2024 through the Returning Officer as required by law.”

Secondly, they are praying to the court for “an order directed at the Inspector General of Police to provide adequate and armed security presence to the Electoral Commission (Respondent) at the designated collation center to enable it to perform its constitutional and statutory duty of conducting and supervising public elections.”

The six parliamentary candidates basically argue that: “In accordance with the EC’s constitutional mandate, parliamentary elections were conducted on December 7, 2024, in the 276 constituencies across the nation, including their constituencies.

“The polls were successfully conducted in all polling stations in their constituencies, and results were announced and declared in all the polling stations and forwarded to the returning officer. In accordance with the law, the collation of election results commenced on the evening of 7 December 2024 at the constituency collation center.

“While collation was ongoing, some young men and thugs entered the collation center, engaging in various acts of violence and threats, which disrupted the collation process. The post-poll acts of violence by those young men and thugs in their constituencies, resulting in the disruption of the collation processes, became a matter of public concern in the country.

“The collation was suspended and rescheduled due to the chaotic environment at the collation centers. The candidates were invited to Respondent’s Regional Collation Centre on Monday, 9th December 2024, to enable the collation process to proceed, but this could not be done.

“The EC later informed the candidates to report at the Police Training School, Tesano, in Accra, to continue collating the results, but the Respondent later informed me that the collation could not continue anymore.

“On 16 December 2024, the candidates indicated that they were compelled in the circumstances to write to the EC to demand the collation and declaration of the results and winner of their respective parliamentary elections within the next 24 hours.

“Even though the demand letter was served on the EC on the same 16 December 2024 at about 10:00 am and acknowledged receipt of the same, the EC has failed or refused to collate and declare the results and winner of the parliamentary elections in their constituencies.

“The applicants contend that, to date, the EC has failed to continue collating the results and declaring the winner of the parliamentary elections as required and prescribed by law.”

KA

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