Private legal practitioner Tsatsu Tsikata has called for reparations for residents of Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe, and Lolobi (SALL), arguing they were unfairly denied representation in Ghana’s 8th Parliament.
Speaking at an honorary lecture at the University of Professional Studies, Accra, on April 15, Tsikata said the injustice stems from the creation of the Oti Region under Constitutional Instrument 112, which left SALL without a Member of Parliament after the 2020 general elections.
While acknowledging the later creation of the Guan District and Guan Constituency ahead of the 2024 elections, Tsikata insisted these moves do not remedy the original wrong.
Also read: OSP fights back: challenges High Court ruling on prosecutorial powers
“It cannot be said that the subsequent creation of a Guan district and a Guan constituency are sufficient to remedy the injustice to the people of SALL,” he stated.
He added: “For one thing, the mere denomination of a district and a constituency does not provide the development resources that are the legitimate aspiration of the people.”
Tsikata emphasized that SALL residents lost not just a voice in Parliament, but also access to development opportunities and resources typically channeled through a sitting MP.
“For the period they lacked representation in parliament and their share of the resources that could have been available through a member of parliament, I dare say they are owed reparation,” he declared.
The seasoned lawyer blamed the Electoral Commission of Ghana (EC) for effectively excluding eligible SALL voters from the 2020 parliamentary polls.
He recalled that the EC had admitted it would have been illegal to ask SALL residents to vote in the Buem constituency in December 2020.
“Yet, that is what the constitutional instrument which the EC has claimed in its defence to the election petition to be the applicable instrument,” Tsikata noted.
He confirmed that the matter remains before the courts, as affected residents continue to pursue legal redress over their exclusion from the electoral process.