NPP urges EC to resume collation of disputed parliamentary results

The NPP has called on the Electoral Commission (EC) to immediately resume the collation of disputed parliamentary results in constituencies where the process was suspended last week.

Addressing a press conference on Monday at the NPP headquarters, Peter Mac Manu, former NPP Chairman and a member of the party’s electoral affairs committee, strongly condemned the NDC for allegedly obstructing the process in constituencies where they anticipate defeat.

The constituencies whose results are in contention currently are Ablekuma North, Dome Kwabenya, Tema Central, Okaikwei North, Ahafo Ano North, Ahafo Ano South West, Obuasi East, Techiman South, and Nsawam Adoagyiri.

Mr. Mac Manu accused the NDC followers of using intimidation to force EC officials at the disputed constituencies to declare the results in their favour when collation has not been completed, describing the opposition party’s actions as an exercise in futility.

“It is pretty obvious that the NDC leadership and supporters who stormed the collation centres to compel the EC under the threat of death to declare their candidates as winners have laboured in vain because we are a country of rule of law, not rule of men,” he said.

“How does the NDC expect the EC to gazette an election result which has not been fully collated and declared?” Mac Manu questioned.

Mac Manu highlighted that the continuation of disrupted collation is not unprecedented in Ghana’s electoral history. He cited the 2024 elections, where a redeclaration of results for the Pru constituency, initially declared for the NPP, was later reversed in favour of the NDC following a recount.

He further referenced a statement from the EC’s Deputy Chair, Mr. Samuel Tettey, made on Friday, December 13, which stated that collation in the disputed constituencies remained incomplete and therefore any declaration was illegal.

“The Commission has maintained that all purported declarations of parliamentary results made under duress, as was seen in those constituencies, were not in conformity with the laid-down processes enshrined in CI 127. Hence, they are illegal and will not be upheld by the EC,” Mac Manu stated.

The NPP called on the EC to expedite the resumption of collation and urged the National Election Security Taskforce to provide the necessary security to ensure a peaceful environment for the process.

“We implore the national election security task force to provide adequate security to facilitate peaceful collation under a serene environment,” Mac Manu said, adding a plea to the NDC leadership to restrain their supporters.

The NPP expressed confidence in the integrity of its results, stating that “We are very certain that our parliamentary candidates in the above-mentioned constituencies won the elections based on verifiable data from the pink sheets, as we have demonstrated.”

The collation exercise, which was being conducted at various collation centres in the disputed constituencies, was moved to the National Police Training School at Tesano in Accra following heightened security concerns.