The High Court in Accra has dismissed an application by the Action Peoples Party (APP) seeking to stop the upcoming Akwatia by-election.
The party had asked the court to suspend the polls until its substantive case against the disqualification of its parliamentary candidate, David Ankomah, was determined.
Delivering his ruling on Thursday, August 28, Justice John Eugene Nyanteh Nyadu held that halting the election would unfairly disrupt the Electoral Commission’s (EC) plans and inconvenience other candidates who had already committed time and resources to their campaigns.
The court further ruled that any financial or reputational loss claimed by the applicants could be addressed through damages if they eventually succeeded in the substantive case.
“In the opinion of this court, since the balance of convenience weighs in favour of the respondent, and the injury to the second applicant can adequately be compensated for by the award of damages, an order for interlocutory injunction should not be granted,” Justice Nyadu stated.
The ruling clears the way for the by-election to proceed as scheduled.
Meanwhile, the substantive case, challenging the EC’s decision to disqualify Mr. Ankomah remains pending.
The APP insists the disqualification was wrongful, arguing that the Commission unfairly demanded a tax clearance certificate on short notice, making compliance impossible. The party has described the decision as an administrative act tainted by “malice and fraud.”
Reacting after the ruling, APP founder Kenneth Nana Kwame Asamoah, who represented both the party and its candidate in court, expressed disappointment but said they would respect the decision.
“We are law-abiding citizens and we have to follow the rules and regulations, and so we will do so and advise ourselves on the way forward,” he said.
Asked whether the APP would back any of the major political parties in the by-election, Mr. Asamoah said no such decision had been made, adding that for now, the party’s priority is pursuing its substantive case against the EC.
Source: Myxyzonline.com
