Kumawu by-election was not free and fair, says independent candidate
Ernest Yaw Anim of the NPP garnered 15, 264 (70.91%) votes to beat his main rival Kwasi Amankwah of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) who had 3,723 (17.29%) votes
An independent candidate, Nana Kwaku Duah has alleged that the just ended by-election in Kumawu in the Ashanti Region was not free and fair.
Ernest Yaw Anim of the NPP garnered 15, 264 (70.91%) votes to beat his main rival Kwasi Amankwah of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) who had 3,723 (17.29%) votes.
Speaking on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Wednesday (24 May), Kwaku Duah said the development is a dent on Ghana’s democracy.
“To be honest with you, I am not happy with the outcome,” Duah said. “I was expecting better showing than that. I will say that if this is the level that our democracy has come to, then we have a long way to go as a country.”
“The election was not free and fair, there was vote buying on the election grounds, something I have not experienced before.
“And the presence of the V8s, ministers, the whole government machinery was in Kumawu yesterday, it wasn’t right, in the sense that people were not free, people were just forced to vote this way with money,” Duah added.
Listen to Nana Kwaku Duah in the attached audio clip below:
Supporters of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in Bodomase in Kumawu took to the streets to celebrate the win of Ernest Yaw Anim (a native of Bodomase) after the Electoral Commission (EC) declared him winner of the by-election held in the Ashanti Region on Tuesday (23 May).
Ernest Yaw Anim of the NPP garnered 15, 264 (70.91%) votes to beat his main rival Kwasi Amankwah of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) who had 3,723 (17.29%) votes.
Two independent candidates; Duah Kwaku ( a former member of the NPP) had 2, 478 (11.51%) and the other Kwaku Duah also garnered 62 (0.29%).
The total valid votes were 21, 527 (96.70%), the total votes cast were 21, 731, rejected ballots were 204 and the turnout was 62.46%.
The constituency has 34,790 registered voters.
Meanwhile, the Vice-President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia has congratulted the MP-elect.
“Congratulations to Ernest Yaw Anim and Kumawu for the victory. Anim, go and make Kumawu proud and leave an indelible mark in Parliament,” the vice-president said in a Facebook post.
“Dress rehearsal for Election 2024”
Earlier, President Akufo-Addo declared that the by-election in Kumawu will serve as a pivotal starting point for the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) victory in the 2024 elections.
Addressing a crowd of supporters during the final campaign rally in Kumawu on Sunday (21 May), the president expressed confidence in the NPP‘s chances and emphasised the significance of the by-election in shaping the party’s trajectory going into the 2024 general election.
“Kumawu holds the key to our success in the upcoming elections. Let us seize this opportunity, mobilise our supporters and pave the way for a resounding victory in 2024,” the president said.
Vote-buying claim
The NDC had earlier accused the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) of vote-buying.
Speaking to the host of the Asaase Breakfast Show, Benjamin Offei-Addo, on Tuesday (23 May 2023), one of the two deputy general secretaries of the NDC, Mustapha Gbande, said that despite the alleged development, the umbrella family will pull a surprise in the poll.
“They [the NPP] were in government when their voter turnout was 13,000 against 11,000 for an independent candidate,” Gbande said.
“We cannot be talking about numbers, but we are going to say that the people of Kumawu will shock President Nana Akufo-Addo and his government.
“Whereas we are camping on goodwill, they on the other side are engaged in vote-buying and the opulent sharing of state resources to buy votes,” he claimed.
The parliamentary seat in Kumawu became vacant with the death of the incumbent MP, Philip Basoah, at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra on 27 March 2023.
Reporting by Fred Dzakpata in Accra
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