Inusah Fuseini, a member of the NDC’s Ayawaso East Investigative Committee, has questioned the legal basis for annulling election results that were conducted, supervised, and certified as credible by the Electoral Commission.
Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on Wednesday, the lawyer and former Tamale Central MP said the core issue is not whether people are angry about what happened during the NDC parliamentary primary in Ayawaso East, but whether the party has the legal authority to overturn the EC’s verdict.
“The elections were conducted and supervised by the Electoral Commission. The results were certified by the Electoral Commission as being credible in a fair and fair manner,” he said.
He explained that while the committee recommended annulment due to what it described as widespread illegality, it also warned party leadership about serious legal and practical obstacles.
“The jurisprudential issue here is, can a political party overturn the verdict of the Electoral Commission when they did not conduct the election?” he asked.
Inusah Fuseini said the committee reached what he described as a “firm conclusion” that there was widespread vote buying and inducement during the primary, and that it was “not limited to one candidate.”
“We came to the conclusion… that there was widespread illegality. I mean, the vote buying and inducement… and it was not limited to one candidate,” he stated.
He said the committee’s findings triggered a swift reaction because the actions violated multiple laws and internal party principles.
“What happened in Ayawaso East were acts of impunity because they violated the express provisions of our laws — political party act, Representation of the People’s Act CI 127… the criminal code, our Constitution,” he said, adding that it also breached the party’s “code of ethics,” “values,” and “philosophy.”
However, he cautioned that the party must not respond to wrongdoing with another potentially unlawful act.
“Do you deal with impunity by acting with impunity? Do you deal with a wrong by acting wrongly?” he asked.
Inusah Fuseini said that, from a governance perspective, annulling results certified by the EC could damage the Commission’s integrity.
“Governance-wise, you will be destroying the sanctity and integrity of the Electoral Commission if you do that,” he warned.
He also pointed to the NDC’s own constitution, saying the closest provision that could be relied on is Article 52, which allows the National Executive Committee to act where a matter is not provided for.
But he noted that most political parties do not include annulment powers in their constitutions because the accepted route is legal action.
“You can do that by law, and you have to go to court,” he said.
He added that time was another hurdle, noting that the committee submitted its report at 4pm on Tuesday, but the EC’s calendar set Wednesday as the final day for presenting a candidate.
“Today is the final day to present a candidate,” he said, arguing that even if the party wanted to proceed, the issue could not be resolved within 24 hours.
Despite the concerns, he said the committee still recommended annulment, but only after highlighting the risks and constraints.
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Source: www.myjoyonline.com
