Rashid Tanko-Computer, the Deputy Director of Elections and IT for the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has asserted that the party will not retreat from its ground operations in the Kpandai Constituency, insisting that the Supreme Court has only suspended the scheduled parliamentary rerun rather than cancelling it entirely.
His remarks follow a dramatic intervention by the nation’s apex court, which ordered the Electoral Commission (EC) to halt all preparatory arrangements for the December 30 poll pending further judicial determination.
“We respect the outcome of the Supreme Court’s ruling – the suspension, but they have not asked us to stop campaigning. We will not stop campaigning. It has rather given us more days to campaign. We are law-abiding citizens as a party. The Supreme Court only suspended the rerun, not cancelled it”
Rashid Tanko-Computer, NDC’s Deputy Director of Elections and IT
While the court order effectively freezes the EC’s logistics – including the recruitment of officials and the printing of ballot papers – Tanko-Computer argued that the legal “pause” is a strategic window for his party to consolidate its support base ahead of the eventual vote.
According to him, the Supreme Court’s decision to stay the execution of the Tamale High Court’s ruling is an administrative necessity rather than a reversal of the push for a rerun.
He interpreted the court’s awareness of the High Court’s orders as a sign that the rerun remains inevitable, though delayed. For the NDC, the adjournment to January 13, 2026, is anything but a setback.
The NDC executive further clarified that the party’s absence from the Supreme Court hearing was a result of procedural failures in the service of court documents.
He maintained that the NDC candidate for Kpandai, Daniel Nsala Wakpal, remains ready to contest, and the party intends to use the extra time to ensure that their message reaches every corner of the Kpandai district, despite the temporary cessation of formal EC activities.
NPP’s Doctrine of Continuity
The narrative of “suspension” is, however, sharply contested by the New Patriotic Party (NPP). Evans Nimako, the NPP’s Director of Elections, has characterized the Supreme Court’s intervention as a validation of the rule of law and the legitimacy of the incumbent Member of Parliament.
From the NPP’s perspective, the halt in EC activities is a necessary step toward overturning a High Court judgment they believe was flawed and lacked proper jurisdiction.
Nimako contended that the original mandate given to Hon. Mathew Nyindam in the 2024 general elections, cannot be easily set aside. He maintained that until the Supreme Court delivers a final verdict on the appeal, the status quo must be preserved, and the representation of Kpandai in Parliament must remain uninterrupted.
“As to whether there will be a rerun or not, the court will determine, but the MP for Kpandai is Matthew Nyindam,” Nimako told journalists shortly after the court proceedings.
This internal tug-of-war occurs against a backdrop of deep procedural complexity.
The Supreme Court’s order for a stay of execution follows an application by Nyindam’s legal team, who argued that the High Court in Tamale wrongly assumed jurisdiction when it annulled the constituency’s election results.
The apex court has also ordered a substituted service for the NDC candidate, Daniel Nsala Wakpal, after lawyers reported difficulties in reaching him personally.
The suspension of the December 30 date creates a vacuum of uncertainty for the voters of Kpandai, who were preparing to return to the polls in less than a fortnight. The EC, which had previously declared its full readiness to conduct the rerun, must now dismantle its logistical rollout and wait for the January 13 hearing.
As Kpandai enters the new year without a resolved parliamentary status, the clash between the NDC’s campaign vigor and the NPP’s legal defense will only intensify.
Whether the January hearing will pave the way for a mid-January rerun or result in the quashing of the Tamale High Court’s order remains the most pressing question for the people of Kpandai and the broader Ghanaian political landscape.
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