NDC candidate vows to fight for justice after EC’s re-collation overturns results in Obuasi East

The Obuasi East Parliamentary candidate for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the 2024 General Elections, Samuel Aboagye, has vowed to fight for justice for the people in his constituency by reversing what he calls an illegal re-collation.

Speaking to the media in Kumasi, Mr. Aboagye emphasized that the will of the people, as demonstrated in the original collated results, which declared him the winner, must be legally protected.

The Electoral Commission (EC) had initially declared Samuel Aboagye as the MP-elect with a total of 18,558 votes, narrowly surpassing Dr. Boakye Yiadom’s 18,539 votes—a margin of just 19 votes. Adjei Owusu Afriyie, an independent candidate, garnered 424 votes.

However, weeks after the declaration, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) filed an application for a Mandamus at the High Court, seeking an order to compel the EC to collate and declare parliamentary results in certain constituencies.

Notably, Obuasi East was not part of that Mandamus application, yet the EC reportedly used questionable means to re-collate the results. This re-collation ultimately overturned the initial outcome, favoring Dr. Patrick Boakye Yiadom, the incumbent MP. Dr. Boakye secured 18,558 votes, representing 49.46%, while Samuel Aboagye received 18,539 votes, or 49.41%.

Dr. Boakye Yiadom has since been sworn in by the Speaker of Parliament, Honorable Alban Bagbin.

Mr. Aboagye has condemned this decision, calling it a "travesty of justice," and insisted it should not stand.

He reiterated that he was duly elected by the people of Obuasi East and questioned the rationale behind the re-collation, alleging that “some components of the Electoral Commission” acted to alter the will of the people at the collation center.

Backing his claim, Mr. Aboagye cited intimidation by state actors, particularly the military, during the election period.

“My personal security, as well as my party executives, were brutally beaten and manhandled by the military, which was captured on video and widely condemned,” he said.

Furthermore, Mr. Aboagye noted that the NPP had admitted defeat, as evidenced by Dr. Boakye Yiadom signing the pink sheet in concession.

He pointed out that this was likely the reason the NPP did not include Obuasi East in their Mandamus application.

“The most painful thing is that institutions that are supposed to protect our democracy and ensure the security of the people are biased and don't actually care about our democracy and security,” he said.

Mr. Aboagye assured that he would use all legitimate means to reverse the High Court’s decision, ensuring that justice is served and the will of the people is upheld.