The Supreme Court has, by a 4–1 majority decision, overturned a High Court ruling that annulled the parliamentary election of the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) candidate for the Kpandai constituency, Matthew Nyindam.
The apex court upheld an application filed by Mr Nyindam invoking its supervisory jurisdiction, effectively restoring him as the duly elected Member of Parliament for Kpandai.
Justice Gabriel Scott Pwamang, who presided over the five-member panel, delivered the lone dissenting opinion.
Mr Nyindam’s application challenged the High Court’s jurisdiction to hear the election petition, arguing that it was filed outside the constitutionally mandated 21-day period stipulated under Ghana’s electoral laws.
At the heart of the dispute was the date on which the Electoral Commission (EC) gazetted the results of the 2024 parliamentary election for the Kpandai constituency. By law, an election petition must be filed within 21 days of the publication of results in the Gazette, failing which the court lacks jurisdiction to entertain the matter.
Mr Nyindam contended that the EC gazetted the Kpandai results on December 24, 2024, and that the petition filed at the Tamale High Court fell outside the 21-day window calculated from that date. He argued that the High Court therefore acted without jurisdiction in annulling his election.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC), however, countered that the 2024 elections constituted a special circumstance, noting that the EC issued two gazette notices—one on December 24, 2024, and another on January 6, 2025. According to the NDC, the latter gazette superseded the earlier one, making January 6, 2025, the operative date for the computation of time.
On that basis, the party maintained that the election petition was filed within time and that the High Court acted lawfully.
The Supreme Court majority rejected this argument, siding with Mr Nyindam’s position that the petition was filed out of time and that the High Court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case.
The panel that heard the application comprised Justices Gabriel Scott Pwamang, Amadu-Omoro Tanko, Yonny Kulendi, Samuel Kwame Adibu Asiedu, and Henry Kwoffie.
The court has indicated that its full reasoned judgment will be delivered on February 6, 2026.
