NPP Lays Blame of Mysterious Esikado-Ketan Parliamentary outcome on NDC

The Essikado-Ketan Constituency Branch of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) is accusing the Parliamentary Candidate of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) Dr. Grace Ayensu-Danquah of disrupting the collation process in what has turned out to be one of the most bizarre display of incompetence by the Electoral Commission (EC).

In the constituency, only three candidates contested the parliamentary seat. However, when the EC certified the results from the constituency, three additional candidates, summing up to six, mysteriously materialised onto the final results, causing massive uproar in the constituency.

The Minister for Railways and the parliamentary candidate on the ticket of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), was eventually confirmed winner in the controversial parliamentary race in Asikado-Ketan.

Per the Electoral Commission’s (EC) certified results for the Essikado-Ketan Constituency, Mr Ghartey polled 26,701 of valid votes cast to win the Parliamentary election while the NDC’s Parliamentary candidate, Grace Ayensu-Danquah garnered 24,527 votes and the Parliamentary Candidate for the Ghana Union Movement polled 629 votes.

Notwithstanding, the NPP in the constituency has issued a statement claiming the entire process was disrupted by the opposition NDC, but the NDC has earlier claimed the entire process was fraught with fraud, as evidenced in the inexplicable appearance of three additional candidates on the EC’s certified result.

However, in a statement signed by the NPP Constituency Secretary for Essikado-Ketan, Thomas Amoah, he claimed that even before the EC could declare the results, the NDC and its parliamentary candidate had deliberately made a “baseless allegation” of alleged a rigged election. 

The NPP further claims the NDC had attempted to use violence to disrupt the collation of votes.

“Their members who were carrying knives and other implements started throwing stones into the Collation Centre. There was absolutely no basis for this commotion. Neither was there any basis for the claim that NDC had won the Parliamentary election when the results from the various polling stations had not been officially collated and announced by the Returning Officer. Around 11 pm Grace Ayensu and her team left the Collation Centre having been repelled by the police and military when they sought to take over the Collation Centre,” Mr. Thomas stated.

This year’s presidential and parliamentary elections have been one of the bloodiest in the Fourth Republic and has been punctuated by a widespread allegation of rigging. 

The NDC Presidential Candidate has refused to accept the presidential results declared by the EC, while it is still unclear which of the two main political parties in Ghana will have majority seats in the august House because many of the seats are still being contested due to alleged rigging.