The Accra High Court has dismissed the New Patriotic Party’s interim injunction that sought to prevent the Electoral Commission from proceeding to rerun elections at 19 out of 281 polling stations in the Ablekuma North constituency on July 11.
Lawyers of NPP Parliamentary candidate, Nana Akua Afriyie sought the court to grant a 10-day ex parte injunction against the EC.
The lawyers noted that the 10-day injunction would grant NPP adequate time to serve the Electoral Commission with an application asking for an explanation regarding the failure to adhere to the High Court’s earlier directive to collate and declare results of three outstanding polling stations.
The NPP Ablekuma North candidate, Nana Akua Afriyie took the Electoral Commission to court despite her party noting that they will abstain from the rerun on Friday, July 9.
Her lawyers filed an application an earlier application at the High Court to quash the decision by the EC to hold a rerun of 19 out of 281 polling stations in the Ablekuma North Constituency.
In court on Wednesday, July 9, lead counsel for Akua Afriyie, Gary Nimako argued that the Electoral Commission had acted in contravention to the Court’s orders on January 4, 2025.
“My Lord will reckon that in exhibits AF1, Exhibit AF2 and AF3 the respondent was consistent in communications, press releases, briefing in parliament that there was only three outstanding polling stations yet to be collated. This meant that following the judgement of the High Court on 4th January 2025, the respondent had moved from the existing 62 polling stations to now only 3 outstanding polling stations.
“My Lord will see from the communications and the respondent’s own showing that it would require security to collate the existent three polling stations in order to complete the process, nothing more.
“My Lord, even in the parliamentary briefing by the Electoral Commission, the deputy EC chairperson, Dr. Bossman Asare was emphatic under oath in parliament that there were only three outstanding polling stations yet to be collated and that they required security to enable them collate the outstanding three polling stations,” Gary noted.
But in his ruling, Justice Ali Baba Abature noted that the application for injunction was unmeritorious and dismissed it.
“The balance of convenience tilts in favour of the respondent who has the constitutional mandate to conduct elections for the people of Ablekuma North constituency in general to have a representation in parliament which is their constitutional right.
“The respondent as a finger of the executive arm of government would be in a position to adequately compensate the applicant in damages should she win the substantive case,” Justice Abature concluded.
With this decision by the High Court, the Electoral Commission is expected to carry out the rerun of the 19 polling stations of the Ablekuma North Constituency.
