Politics

Kpandai case: Reset means people-centered justice, not party interest – Amaliba

A member of the governing National Democratic Congress(NDC) communication team, Abraham Amaliba, says the Supreme Court’s order halting the Kpandai parliamentary rerun reflects a reset toward people-centered justice, not partisan interest.

A member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Abraham Amaliba, has urged the Supreme Court to remain steadfast in serving the interests of the Ghanaian people following its decision to suspend the planned rerun of the Kpandai parliamentary election.

Speaking on Key Points on TV3 on Saturday, December 20, Amaliba said the NDC’s promise of a national “reset” was anchored in strengthening institutions, particularly the judiciary, to act independently and fairly.

“When we promised a reset, it was to have a Supreme Court that would serve the people of this country and not a political party,” he stated. “The current Supreme Court must continue in this direction.”

His comments followed the Supreme Court’s directive to the Electoral Commission (EC) to suspend all preparations for the rerun of the Kpandai parliamentary election pending the determination of processes before the court.

The apex court issued the order on Tuesday, December 16, after lawyers for Kpandai MP Matthew Nyindam informed the court that they had been unable to serve the NDC candidate, Daniel Nsala Wakpal, and applied for substituted service.

Nyindam is seeking to overturn the judgment of the Tamale High Court, arguing that the court wrongly assumed jurisdiction in the election petition.

The Supreme Court has adjourned the matter to January 13, 2026, for further hearing.

Also contributing to the discussion, a law lecturer at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), Justice Abdulai, commended the Supreme Court for what he described as a bold and independent decision.

“For the first time, I truly feel we have an independent Supreme Court,” he said. “One must ask whether this decision would have happened last year under the previous administration.”

The Electoral Commission had earlier announced plans to conduct a rerun of the parliamentary election in the Kpandai Constituency on December 30, 2025. In a press release dated December 10 and signed by Fred Tetteh, Deputy Director of the EC’s Research, Monitoring and Evaluation Department, the Commission said the rerun followed a Tamale High Court ruling on November 24, 2025.

The High Court, presided over by Justice Emmanuel Brew Plange, ordered the rerun within 30 days, citing irregularities in voting and collation processes that undermined the credibility of the election results.

The case originated from a petition filed by former MP and NDC parliamentary candidate for Kpandai, Daniel Nsala Wakpal, who challenged the election of Matthew Nyindam.

Wakpal argued that the December 7, 2024, parliamentary election was invalid due to irregularities and inconsistencies in Form 8A pink sheets from 41 out of 152 polling stations.

According to the petition, the declaration and publication of the results did not comply with Regulation 43 of the Public Elections Regulations, 2020 (C.I. 127), and that the non-compliance affected the overall outcome of the election.

Nyindam’s lawyers subsequently filed a notice of appeal and a stay of execution against the High Court’s decision, setting the stage for the Supreme Court’s intervention in the matter.