From 2012 To Date, EC Doesn�t Work With Laws Governing Elections - NAPO

Member of Parliament for Manhyia South in the Ashanti Region, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh says Ghana’s Electoral Commission (EC) is the only commission in the world which has no respect for the law governing elections.

According to him, from the 2012 elections to date, the Electoral Commission headed Dr. Kwadwo Afari Gyan has never worked with the Constitutional Instrument (CI) 72 which governs the EC's operations.

The NPP Legislator’s comment comes on the heels of the EC’s limited voters registration exercise which begun last week at its District offices across the country. 

The exercise is to allow teenagers who just attained the age of 18 years to register ahead of general elections in December 2016, and also afford the opportunity to those who have misplaced their cards to have it replaced.

It has however been suspended after four political parties kicked against the exercise lamenting they were not consulted.

General Secretaries of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), and opposition parties New Patriotic Party, Convention People's Party and People's National Convention (PNC) were livid with the EC's decision to conduct the registration at the EC's District offices. They had preferred the exercise was done in Electoral areas 

Speaking on Okay Fm’s "Ade Akye Abia" Morning Show, NAPO as he is known for in politics said the EC has failed to come up with its 4 year mandatory plan after every election with the excuse of financial restriction but he begged to differ on that excuse.

He explained that the reason for the failure to plan for the next 4 years before the 2016 elections is because the EC officials are bereft of ideas to improve the commission; adding it was as a result of the inaction on the part of some EC officials that people voted without verification in the country.

From 2012 to date, the EC doesn’t work with the law governing elections; I have never seen any EC in the world which violate its law like our EC….so why can’t Ghana’s EC plan to come out with its activities? When you complain, the officials will say, it is financial constraints but it is not true; they simply are poor with the work at the EC”, he fumed.

He emphasized that every problem which has arisen from elections in the country must be laid at the doorstep of the Electoral Commission.

It was the fault of some of EC officials that people voted without verification. District Assembly elections which Ghana wasted so much money but could not take place is as a result of some EC officials”, he stated.

I can tell you that this limited registration could have been masterminded by some EC officials that the rest are not aware of; and is this good for us as a country? I don’t think none of the current EC officials is capable of doing the work to the extent of recommending them to occupy the EC boss’s seat after Afari Gyan has retired in June”, he added.