Ablekuma North: Accra Mayor admitted giving supporters GHC20

Accra Mayor, Michael Kpakpo Allotey, has rejected claims that he is influencing voters with money during the ongoing parliamentary rerun in the Ablekuma North constituency, where voting is taking place at 19 polling stations.

The Mayor, who refers to himself as the “Mayor of the Street,” has been accused by some voters of offering cash incentives to sway support in favour of Ewurabena Aubynn, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate.

Onua News captured footage showing some voters receiving GHC100 notes at the Church of Pentecost, North Odorkor 2 polling station—fueling speculation about possible voter inducement.

In an interview with Onua FM’s Akua Sarpomaa, Allotey confirmed that money was distributed but insisted it was not done to buy votes. He explained that the money was meant for his team members, who were tasked with moving from house to house to encourage reluctant voters to participate in the process.

He said, “You see a lot of people here because I’m Mayor of the street.”

According to him, his aim was to energize and mobilize voters who may have been discouraged due to what he described as “eight years of bad governance.” He added that he gave out GHC20 to some of his volunteers to buy porridge and motivate people to come out of their homes and vote.

“I haven’t shared money,” Allotey insisted. “The people I brought to go out to people’s homes to bring them out to vote are the ones I gave GHC20.00 to buy porridge to go and bring the people out.”

When asked whether his actions were intended to influence the election in favour of the NDC, Allotey denied any wrongdoing, stating his efforts were aimed at mobilization, not inducement. “I came here purposely to do that,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Electoral Commission (EC) is supervising the rerun in 19 polling stations due to irregularities found during the December 2024 general elections. According to the EC, the results from these stations were scanned and used in the final collation without verification by the Presiding Officers, raising questions about their legitimacy.

The situation has sparked a heated political battle between the two main parties. While the NDC initially called for a rerun in 37 polling stations, the NPP argued that only three stations’ results were unverified. Eventually, the EC agreed to rerun elections in 19 stations after reaching a compromise with both parties.

Despite the NPP’s official stance to boycott the rerun, its parliamentary candidate, Nana Akua Owusu Afriyie, continued campaigning and filed an injunction in court to block the vote, arguing that she had already won the previous election. The court, however, dismissed her application, allowing the EC to proceed.

The rerun is crucial, as it is expected to determine the final outcome of the Ablekuma North parliamentary seat, which has been left vacant since the 2024 elections. With a total of 6,839 registered voters expected to cast their ballots today, both the NDC and NPP are eyeing victory in what has become a closely watched contest.