Minister-designate of Railway Development who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for Hohoe Constituency, Mr John-Peter Amewu, has said he would have won the seat by a higher margin if the people of Santrokofi, Akpafu, Lolobi and Likpe (SALL) had voted in the December 7 polls last year.

The first-time lawmaker made the comment when he took his turn before the Appointments Committee of Parliament on Wednesday, 24 February 2021.

Mr Amewu told the Committee: “I sympathise with my brothers and sisters at SALL for not taking part in the parliamentary elections. I went into the elections as a player and not a referee.

“I did not constitute the rules that were in place for me to come and contest”.

The former Energy Minister further disclosed that in the 2004 and 2008 polls, Santrokofi, Akpafu, Lolobi and Likpe were his strongholds.

“I just went in as a contestant and, unfortunately, for one reason or another, they were not allowed to vote in Hohoe.

“I sympathise with them, and I would have been very happy if the people of SALL had voted because, in 2004 and 2008, those were my strongholds. If they had voted, I would have even won with a higher margin.”

Mr Amewu polled 26,952 votes in the December 7 polls to beat the main opposition National Democratic Congress’ (NDC) Margaret Kweku, who polled 21,821 votes.

As a result of the creation of the Oti Region and subsequent creation of the Guan District (Santrokofi, Akpafu, Lolobi and Likpe SALL), the Electoral Commission of Ghana gave a directive that the people of Santrokofi, Akpafu, Lolobi and Likpe (SALL) should not vote in the parliamentary election in the Hohoe Constituency on December 7.

The Supreme Court of Ghana quashed an interim injunction granted by the Ho High Court to some applicants, who sought to stop the gazetting of the Hohoe parliamentary results of the 2020 general elections, as well as the swearing-in of the MP-elect for the constituency.

By a unanimous decision, the five-member panel of the highest court of the land, presided over by Justice Yaw Appau with colleagues Samuel Marful-Sau, Gertrude Torkunor, Amadu Tanko and Clemence Hornyenuga, said on Tuesday, 5 January 2020 that the submissions of the applicants at the High Court and at the apex court, Supreme Court suggest that they were seeking to enforce their fundamental human rights to exercise their franchise in the elections organised by the Electoral Commission.

The court, thus, said there was no justifiable reason to stop the gazetting of the results of Hohoe or the swearing-in of Mr Amewu.

It, therefore, urged the interested parties, represented by Mr Tsatsu Tsikata, to direct their action at the election management body rather than Mr Amewu, adding that the Ho High Court judge who granted the interim injunction erred.

 Background

The AG filed the motion on notice at the Supreme Court to overturn the interim injunction granted by the Ho High Court, presided over by Justice George Buadi, which followed an ex parte application by eligible voters in the newly-created Guan district.

The applicants had prayed the court to restrain Mr Amewu from presenting himself to be sworn in as MP for the area or from holding himself out as such.

The eligible voters, who are resident in the newly-created districts which include Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe, and Lolobi, were not allowed to vote in the December 7 parliamentary elections.