Minority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, has raised concern over what he describes as a troubling pattern of delays by the High Court in Tamale in relation to the disputed Kpandai parliamentary election.
In a statement posted on his official Facebook page, the Minority Leader said Justice Manuel Bart-Plange Brew, who presided over the case, failed to sit on Thursday, December 18, 2025, despite having earlier fixed the date to deliver a ruling on an application for stay of execution filed by Kpandai Member of Parliament, Matthew Nyindam.
According to him, no ruling was delivered, no new date was announced, and parties were only informed by the court registrar that the judge was “indisposed.”
Mr Afenyo-Markin noted that the development follows earlier delays in the same case, including the late release of the written judgment after Justice Brew, on November 24, 2025, nullified the entire Kpandai parliamentary election and ordered a fresh poll.
The Minority Leader recalled that the election petition challenged alleged irregularities in only a limited number of polling stations, yet the court annulled the entire election, which Mr Nyindam had won with 27,947 votes against his opponent’s 24,213.
He further criticised Parliament’s decision to treat the Kpandai seat as vacant based on the High Court ruling, despite the fact that an appeal and an application for certiorari were already pending before higher courts.
According to him, the Minority Caucus had urged restraint, arguing that parliamentary action should be suspended until all judicial processes were concluded, but those concerns were ignored.
Mr Afenyo-Markin explained that following the judgment, Mr Nyindam applied for a stay of execution to halt the enforcement of the High Court’s orders while the appeal and supervisory proceedings were ongoing.
Justice Brew, he said, had fixed mid-December to rule on the application, with December 18 publicly confirmed as the ruling date.
He expressed concern that the failure to deliver the ruling on the scheduled date, without a clear explanation or a new date, risks undermining confidence in the judicial process, particularly given the political and constitutional significance of the case.
The Minority Leader pointed out that the Supreme Court has since intervened, issuing an interim order on December 16, 2025, directing the Electoral Commission to suspend all steps toward a rerun of the Kpandai election pending the determination of the certiorari application.
While stressing that respect for the judiciary remains fundamental to Ghana’s democracy, Mr Afenyo-Markin argued that such respect must be mutual and reinforced by transparency, consistency, and adherence to timelines set by the courts themselves.
He therefore called on Justice Brew to promptly deliver a ruling on the stay of execution application to restore procedural clarity, noting that the Court of Appeal, the Supreme Court, the Electoral Commission, Parliament, and the people of Kpandai are all awaiting direction.
According to him, delays following what he described as a far-reaching and controversial judgment risk deepening uncertainty and public anxiety over the administration of justice in the matter.
