Kpandai Parliamentary rerun: Supreme Court chides Electoral Commission for court absence

The Supreme Court has ordered the Electoral Commission (EC) to immediately suspend all preparations for the proposed re-run of the 2024 parliamentary election in the Kpandai Constituency of the Northern Region, pending the determination of a legal challenge before it.

The directive was issued on Tuesday by a five-member panel of the apex court presided over by Justice Gabriel Pwamang, as it heard an application filed by New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary candidate for Kpandai, Mathew Nyindam, seeking to quash a High Court judgment that ordered the re-run.

During proceedings, the panel openly expressed displeasure at the absence of representatives from the Electoral Commission, despite the commission being a central party in the matter.

When the case was called, Justice Pwamang questioned counsel for the applicant, Justin Amenuvor, about why officials of the EC were not present in court.

The concern was echoed more forcefully by Justice Tanko Amadu, who criticised the commission’s conduct, saying, “They don’t consider the actions serious enough? And they are running our elections and they will not come to the Supreme Court?”

Earlier in the sitting, lawyers for Mr Nyindam were before the court to seek an order for substituted service, to enable them serve the originating motion and statement of case on the National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate for Kpandai, Daniel Nsala Wakpal, who contested the 2024 election.

Following deliberations, the Supreme Court ruled that all steps toward conducting the re-run must be put on hold to prevent the election process from overtaking the court’s consideration of the certiorari application challenging the High Court’s decision.

The panel noted that allowing preparations for the re-run to continue could undermine the authority of the court and potentially render its final decision ineffective.

The case has drawn national attention, with both political parties closely watching developments, as the Supreme Court’s eventual ruling will determine whether the High Court’s order for a re-run stands or is set aside.