Kingsley Nyarko, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament for Kwadaso Constituency, has refuted allegations of attempting to influence electoral officials during the parliamentary by-election in the Ejisu Constituency on Tuesday, April 30, 2024.

The MP was captured on tape placing a white envelope on a table at a polling station while interacting with officials of the Electoral Commission overseeing the election.

The Electoral Commission, in a statement, announced that its preliminary investigation established that the envelope contained money.

However, addressing the media amid the uproar over the incident, the MP denied any wrongdoing.

"If I were to influence them, do you think I would do it in such a public space? That is why I am saying that I have not bribed anybody, I have not influenced anybody to do anything untoward for my candidate; I have not done that," he stated.

Despite the MP's refusal to disclose the contents of the envelope when pressed by journalists, the Electoral Commission's statement on Tuesday confirmed that the envelope contained money intended for the officials' lunch.

"Our investigations further revealed that the man in the video walked to the table and asked them whether they had eaten. He then placed the envelope on the table and asked them to use the contents for lunch, after which he walked away," the EC explained.

The commission identified the two election officers involved as Regina Serwaa, a ballot issuer, and George Sasu, the Presiding Officer, noting that both were temporary election officers.

In response to the incident, the commission has withdrawn the services of the officials and initiated discussions with the Ghana Police Service to commence criminal investigation processes.

GA/SARA

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