Matthew Nyindam still Kpandai MP-Supreme Court quashes High Court order
By DL News
Published
2 min read
The outcome reinstates Mr Nyindam as Member of Parliament for Kpandai, after the apex court upheld his request for the Supreme Court to intervene under its supervisory jurisdiction, arguing that the High Court acted without jurisdiction.
Ghana’s Supreme Court has, by a 4–1 majority, set aside a High Court ruling that nullified the Kpandai parliamentary election victory of Matthew Nyindam of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
The outcome reinstates Mr Nyindam as Member of Parliament for Kpandai, after the apex court upheld his request for the Supreme Court to intervene under its supervisory jurisdiction, arguing that the High Court acted without jurisdiction.
The dissenting judge was Justice Gabriel Scott Pwamang, who presided over the panel.
At the centre of the dispute is a procedural question: when exactly the Electoral Commission (EC) gazetted the Kpandai results from the 2024 parliamentary elections.
Under Ghana’s electoral framework, an election petition must be filed within 21 days of the gazette notice. If it is filed outside that window, the court is stripped of jurisdiction — meaning the petition becomes incompetent, regardless of its substance.
Mr Nyindam’s case was that the EC gazetted the results on 24 December 2024. On that basis, any challenge had to be filed within 21 days from that date.
He contended that the petitioner filed at the Tamale High Court after the deadline, and therefore the High Court had no jurisdiction to hear the case in the first place — making its annulment ruling legally unsustainable.
The National Democratic Congress (NDC) argued that the 2024 elections were unusual because the EC issued two gazette notices — one dated 24 December 2024 and another dated 6 January 2025.
According to the NDC, the second notice superseded the first, making 6 January 2025 the operative date for calculating the 21-day limit. On that interpretation, the petition was filed within time and the High Court was right to proceed.
The majority of the Supreme Court judges disagreed with the NDC’s position, accepted Mr Nyindam’s jurisdictional challenge, and consequently overturned the High Court decision — restoring his parliamentary election win.
The panel comprised:
Justice Gabriel Scott Pwamang (presiding, dissented)
Justice Amadu-Omoro Tanko
Justice Yonny Kulendi
Justice Samuel Kwame Adibu Asiedu
Justice Henry Kwoffie
The court’s full written reasons are expected on 6 February 2026.
