A legal expert, Justice Srem Sai, has raised concerns about the Electoral Commission's (EC) authority to revise election results in nine constituencies, seven of which were later declared in favor of the New Patriotic Party (NPP).

This recount, held on December 21, 2024, follows contentious parliamentary elections on December 7. The EC justified the revisions by claiming errors in the original results. After the recount, the NPP emerged victorious in seven constituencies, including areas like Ahafo Ano North and Tema Central.

Although the EC explained that all political parties involved agreed to the discrepancies in the counting process, legal professionals are questioning whether the EC overstepped its bounds. Justice Sai, during an appearance on the Citi Breakfast Show, pointed out the critical distinction between correcting simple errors and addressing formal disputes, which, he argued, falls under judicial jurisdiction.

Mr Sai emphasized that once a dispute arises, it should be taken to court rather than handled by the EC.

While recognizing that errors can be corrected, he stressed that the legal process requires proper declarations before any challenges can be made in court.

He warned that bypassing this procedure could risk the fairness and legality of the election process.

“There were situations where all the parties agreed that there were mistakes, and that is without dispute. However, when there is dispute, the law is that the declaration has to be gazetted before one can challenge the outcome in court. There is, however, a school of thought that the EC can correct its own mistake, and so we are surprised that the EC can come out and say it has made a mistake, and wants to correct it and not what it is now doing.

“There is a difference between a mistake and a dispute, and what we have in the current situation is a dispute, so long as one person is saying A and the other is saying B, it is a dispute. When you allege lawlessness as the EC has done in these situations or illegalities, there is no proper avenue for resolving an illegality outside of the court,” he added.