The High Court in Tamale has issued an injunction preventing Dr. Mahama Tia Kabiru from identifying himself as the elected parliamentary candidate (PC) of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for the Walewale constituency in the North East Region.
This injunction, ordered on Monday, June 24 by Justice Richard Kugyapaw, follows a challenge to the election results by the incumbent Member of Parliament (MP), Hajia Lariba Zuweratu.
In January of this year, Dr. Kabiru, a 35-year-old PhD holder and special advisor to the Vice President, narrowly defeated Hajia Lariba in a closely contested primary election. The election, conducted under strict security measures and attended by regional and constituency executives, saw Dr. Kabiru clinch victory with 345 votes against Hajia Lariba’s 338 votes.
Hajia Lariba promptly contested the results, filing an ex parte motion at the Tamale High Court accusing the party, Dr. Kabiru, and the Electoral Commission of electoral irregularities and misconduct.
She sought an injunction to prevent Dr. Kabiru from declaring himself the winner, a request that has now been granted.
During the primary, two other candidates, Tahiru Sham-Una and Jangdoo Mahama, received 145 and 1 vote respectively. Initially, the NPP, as a third defendant, attempted to have the case dismissed, alleging that Hajia Lariba had violated the party’s constitution by not utilizing internal conflict resolution mechanisms before resorting to court.
Before this ruling, supporters of the NPP in the Walewale constituency held a press conference urging the party’s Presidential Candidate, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, to intervene and resolve the dispute swiftly. They expressed concern that failure to resolve the issue promptly could jeopardize the party’s prospects in the upcoming general elections.
In March, the High Court had previously granted NPP’s plea for an out-of-court settlement. Initially, on March 15, the party had requested the court to dismiss the case, but the court declined and imposed a fine of GH¢8000 on the party. However, the court did agree to the party’s subsequent request for an out-of-court resolution
