Kpandai Seat,Supreme Court Rules Infavour of NPP

Supreme Court Quashes Tamale High Court Ruling on Kpandai Parliamentary Election

January 28,2026

The Supreme Court of Ghana has set aside a ruling by the Tamale High Court that annulled the results of the parliamentary election in the Kpandai Constituency of the Northern Region, effectively stopping the Electoral Commission’s planned rerun of the poll.

The apex court delivered its decision on January 28, 2026, by a 4–1 majority. Justice Gabriel Scott Pwamang, who presided as President of the panel, dissented. The majority decision was supported by Justices Yonny Kulendi, Amadu Tanko, Samuel Asiedu, and Henry Kwofie.

The Supreme Court granted an application for certiorari filed by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Kpandai, Matthew Nyindam, who had challenged the jurisdiction of the Tamale High Court to nullify his election and order a rerun. The Court is expected to release its full reasons for the decision on February 6, 2026.

Mr. Nyindam argued that the Tamale High Court lacked jurisdiction because the parliamentary election petition filed by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate, Daniel Nsala Wakpal, was submitted outside the statutory 21-day period required under electoral law.

According to his case, the Kpandai parliamentary election results were gazetted on December 24, 2024, making the petition filed on January 25, 2025, time-barred. His legal team contended that all subsequent orders by the High Court, including the annulment of the election and the directive for a rerun, were therefore null and void.

Counsel for the NDC candidate disputed this claim, arguing that the relevant Gazette publication was issued on January 6, 2025, and covered all constituencies, including Kpandai. They maintained that the petition was filed within the required timeframe and accused Mr. Nyindam of attempting to reverse his earlier reliance on the January Gazette, raising issues of fairness and estoppel.

Following the High Court’s ruling, the Electoral Commission (EC) had scheduled a rerun of the Kpandai parliamentary election for December 31, 2025. However, the EC explained that multiple Gazette notifications existed, reflecting different batches of constituency results. The rerun was subsequently placed on hold pending the Supreme Court’s determination.

With the Supreme Court quashing the Tamale High Court judgment, the planned rerun has been halted, and Matthew Nyindam’s election as Member of Parliament for Kpandai remains valid. The ruling allows him to retain his seat and return to Parliament as the duly elected representative of the Kpandai Constituency.

The decision is expected to have broader implications for the handling of election petitions, particularly regarding strict adherence to statutory timelines and jurisdictional limits of the courts.