It appears that the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) is facing some challenges as one of its flagbearer aspirants, Dr. Kwabena Duffour, has reportedly dashed to court to injunct the presidential primaries scheduled for May 13, 2023.
This comes after the presidential hopeful had threatened to stop the process over attempt by some hierarchy of the party to use flawed voter register to conduct the 2023 presidential Primaries and give an undeserved advantage to one of the aspirants, former President John Dramani Mahama.
Kofi K. Kukubor, the campaign team member of Dr. Duffour disclosed this when speaking on Accra based radio station, Asempa Fm on Tuesday, May 9, 2023.
If the court process goes through, the Presidential Primaries of the party is most likely to be postponed.
The parliamentary primaries, however, will go on as planned since they are not part of the writ to seek the injunction.
Dr. Duffour’s campaign team had raised concerns over alleged anomalies in the voter register provided by the NDC Election Committee, which they believe could affect the integrity of the electoral process and the accuracy of the voter data being presented.
The team had called for an urgent round table discussion to address the issue and ensure a transparent and fair electoral process, a demand that had been rejected leaving the Duffuor team with no option but to proceed to court.
According to a press statement, the said concerns were first expressed in a letter dated April 17, 2023, wherein the campaign team requested access to the voters register, which serves as the basis for determining the eligibility of delegates in the impending presidential and parliamentary primaries.
The statement added that following the said concerns, on May 2, 2023, a meeting was held at the NDC Party Headquarters, during which some information regarding the voter’s register was disclosed to Dr. Kwabena Duffour’s team.
However, upon conducting a preliminary analysis of the information provided, the campaign team discovered what they deemed to be excessive anomalies in the register. The irregularities have raised doubts about the integrity of the electoral process and the accuracy of the voter data being presented by the NDC Elections Committee.
In light of the concerns, Dr. Kwabena Duffour’s campaign team had urgently requested that the relevant stakeholders, including key actors within the party, should engage in a round table discussion to address the identified issues promptly.
The team emphasized the importance of resolving these matters to ensure a transparent and fair election, avoiding any potential pitfalls that may have severe consequences.
“Per an earlier correspondence dated April 17, 2023, a request was made to the NDC Party Headquarters on. Tuesday, May 02, 2023, for the voters register as stipulated in the Regulations governing the upcoming elections
“As the base document that will determine the eligibility of the appropriate voters, and as per the procedures associated with our national elections, we made the request to be able to comb through and be very satisfied with the register.
“Based on the letter of May 02, 2023, a meeting was convened at the NDC Headquarters on Thursday, May 04, 2023 at which some information was given to the Dr. Kwabena Duffuor Team
“A cursory analysis of the information given us, further confirms our concerns about excessive anomalies in what the Party is presenting to the EC as the Voters Register.
“We are by this letter drawing your attention to possible legal ramifications of the actions and inactions of the NDC Elections Committee,” part of the statement read.
By Vincent Kubi