The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has explained why it is unable to annul the Ayawaso East parliamentary primary, following its decision to retain Mohammed Baba Jamal as the party’s candidate for the upcoming by-election.

The decision comes amid allegations of vote buying during the party’s parliamentary primary held on Saturday, February 7. Baba Jamal has consistently denied the allegations.

A three-member committee established by the party to investigate claims of inducement submitted a report that informed the party’s decision.

Addressing journalists on Tuesday, February 10, the NDC’s General Secretary, Fifi Kwetey, outlined several constraints that prevented the annulment of the primary.

He cited time limitations, noting that the Electoral Commission is expected to close nominations for the by-election on Wednesday, February 11, leaving the party with little room to restart the process.

Mr. Kwetey also referenced legal and constitutional issues, explaining that the party’s constitution does not provide for the annulment of parliamentary primaries under such circumstances.

He added that the investigative committee recommended annulment despite these constraints:

“The committee’s report is that ideally, we should have annulment of the primary. However, the committee acknowledges that there are real obstacles that make it difficult for us to do that. The party’s constitution doesn’t have a provision for annulment of the election.

“We are time-bound because we need to present a candidate to the EC on February 11, and there are legal challenges that could be mounted by whoever won. In light of that, the party has taken the recommendations, and we have no option but to present Baba Jamal as our candidate,” he said.

Mr. Kwetey further disclosed that the NDC plans to expand the investigative committee as part of broader internal reforms aimed at strengthening party processes:

“We’re going to do a comprehensive review of the whole process that lead to our internal elections. We’re expanding the committee by adding four more members, to make it a 7-member committee, so that they come out with recommendations to deal with this inappropriate canker as far as the elections are concerned,” he said.

According to the General Secretary, these factors collectively informed the party’s decision to maintain Baba Jamal as its parliamentary candidate for the Ayawaso East by-election.

He also noted that the committee had found inappropriate conduct by all the candidates, further underscoring the need for reforms to prevent similar issues in future internal elections.

The party has since reaffirmed Mohammed Baba Jamal as its candidate as it prepares to contest the Ayawaso East by-election.