The court has quashed Oliver’s suit and cleared the way for Baba Jamal (R) to contest the election
An Accra High Court has dismissed an application by pressure group Democracy Hub, which sought to stop the Electoral Commission (EC) from recognising National Democratic Congress (NDC) parliamentary candidate for the Ayawaso East by-election, Mohammed Baba Jamal Ahmed, citing alleged vote-buying during the party’s recent parliamentary primaries.
With the court dismissing the application, there is no legal barrier preventing Baba Jamal from contesting, allowing the Ayawaso East by-election to go ahead as scheduled on Tuesday, March 3, 2026.
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According to a report by 3news.com, in a ruling on Monday, March 2, 2026, the presiding judge Justice Agyenim Boateng dismissed the first and third grounds raised by Democracy Hub, concluding that the process used was indeed incompetent.
In their counter-motion, however, lawyers for the NDC urged the court to dismiss the suit by Democracy Hub, arguing that the process adopted by Democracy Hub was defective and procedurally incompetent.
“The Respondent’s action seeks enforcement or interpretation of provisions (Articles 55(5) and 45(b)) of the 1992 Constitution of Ghana, which is exclusively reserved for the Supreme Court under Articles 2(1)(a) and 130(1)(a) of the Constitution. Therefore, this Honourable Court lacks jurisdiction to entertain the matter.
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“The Respondent cannot seek judicial review reliefs of certiorari and mandamus through a writ action; therefore, the procedure adopted is procedurally incompetent. The Respondent has no locus standi to pursue this matter in this Honourable Court”, the report stated.
Democracy Hub filed an injunction application at the High Court in Accra seeking to stop the EC from recognising Baba Jamal as a qualified candidate in the Ayawaso East parliamentary by-election.
The group cited alleged vote-buying and inducement in the NDC primaries that produced Baba Jamal as the party’s candidate.
The suit, filed by lawyer and activist Oliver Barker-Vormawor on Monday, February 16, 2026, named the NDC, the EC, and the Attorney General’s Department as defendants.
JKB/VPO
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