…ahead of crucial Ayawaso East By-election
By Prince Ahenkorah
The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has cleared the decks for a high-stakes by-election in the Ayawaso East constituency on 3 March, after an Accra High Court struck out a last-ditch legal effort to disqualify its candidate, Baba Jamal.
The ruling, delivered on 2 March by Justice Agyenim-Boateng, disposes of a suit filed by the pressure group Democracy Hub, which sought to annul the NDC’s primary results over alleged vote-buying.
The court’s decision, which deemed the originating summons ‘incompetent’ on procedural grounds, removes a significant political distraction for the party, allowing it to focus its machinery on retaining a crucial seat in Ghana’s capital.
Democracy Hub’s lawsuit targeted the NDC, the Electoral Commission (EC), and the Attorney-General, arguing that the primary won by Baba Jamal was illegitimate due to widespread financial inducements.
The group sought to restrain the EC from accepting the candidate’s nomination, a move that would have thrown the party’s campaign into chaos on the eve of the poll. However, legal counsel for the NDC successfully argued that the plaintiff lacked the standing to bring the case and that the originating processes were fundamentally flawed.
By upholding this preliminary objection, the court avoided a substantive hearing on the vote-buying allegations, meaning the claim remains legally untested but politically potent.
The ruling underscores a recurring tension in Ghanaian politics: the judiciary’s reluctance to intervene in internal party democracy versus public demands for electoral transparency. While the court has cleared Baba Jamal to contest, the shadow of the initial allegations lingers.
The NDC had already conducted its own internal review, with a three-member committee investigating the primary and ultimately upholding the result, citing constitutional provisions and the immutable deadlines of the EC.
This dual-track resolution internal party discipline and judicial proceduralism has effectively neutralised a threat that could have split the party vote.
With the legal roadblock removed, the spotlight in Ayawaso East now turns squarely to Baba Jamal’s prospects against his opponents. The NDC will be keen to project unity, but the accusations of financial inducements could resurface on the campaign trail, weaponised by rivals eager to question his mandate.
For the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and other contenders, the court’s dismissal does not erase the narrative of a tainted primary; it simply reframes the battleground. Baba Jamal, who has consistently denied any wrongdoing, must now defend not only his policy platform but also the legitimacy of his candidacy.
For the NDC, navigating this challenge successfully is critical. Ayawaso East is a bellwether constituency, and a loss here could signal broader vulnerabilities ahead of the 2028 general elections.
The party’s ability to contain internal disputes and see off external legal challenges will be watched closely by its hierarchy. Meanwhile, Democracy Hub’s failed suit highlights the high bar for civil society groups seeking to use the courts to police political conduct, a dynamic that will fuel ongoing debates about the need for stronger campaign finance regulations in Ghana.
For now, however, the political class in Ayawaso East is focused not on the courtroom, but on the ballot box.