Electoral Reforms: Split Electoral Commission into two separate bodies-NDC proposes
Story by: Ishmael Barfi
In efforts to ensure a smooth and violent free conduction of the next General elections in the country, Ghana, the main opposition party, National Democratic Congress (NDC) has proposed for a split of the Electoral Commission (EC) into two separate and distinct bodies.
This according to the party will page way for efficient and effective discharge of responsibilities in ensuring a transparent, free and fair elections in 2024.
The proposed bodies according to the main opposition party, NDC should comprise of an Office of the Regulator of Political Parties (ORPP) responsible for the registration and regulation of political parties and an Electoral Commission (EC) responsible for the conduct of Presidential, Parliamentary, District Assembly and Unit Committee and other public elections and referenda.
Electoral Reforms: Split Electoral Commission into two separate bodies-NDC proposes
The suggestion forms part of the NDC’s technical committee report on proposals for electoral reforms.
Speaking at press briefing in Accra at the party headquarters on the Committee’s Report, the General Secretary Johnson Asiedu Nketiah explained that, the party constituted an eight-member committee chaired by Nana Ato Dadzie to engage and consult stakeholders on issues regarding to elections in the country.
The committee he further said identified eight election-related problems including; the violence and militarization, lack of credible consultative process, a clear absence of level playing field for elections, among others.
Touching on the 34 recommendations contained in the party’s position paper on electoral reforms, Asiedu Nketiah revealed that, the Committee proposed that the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) should be backed by legislation well as its composition and functions spelt out.
Electoral Reforms: Split Electoral Commission into two separate bodies-NDC proposes
In addition, he said members of the EC should be appointed by the President in consultation with the Council of State and prior approval by Parliament, provided that the Chairperson of the Commission must be approved by two-thirds of the house.
The EC, he said, should be given the right by law to apply to court to remove deceased and other unqualified persons from the provisional register based on the information provided by relevant state institutions.
The NDC General Secretary said the EC should ensure that recruitment for the various categories of election officials was made non-partisan.
“The available positions should be advertised and non-partisan incompetent persons selected after interviews. The selected persons should then be given appropriate training,” he added.
The general secretary of NDC said there should be a comprehensive legislation dealing with election security, which outlined specific roles for security agencies during elections.
With regards to the involvement of the military, the proposed recommendations strongly stated that, the military must not be deployed in civilian elections under any circumstance, well spelt out roles of security is of great importance in the next Presidential and Parliamentary elections, this 2024.
Taking his turn to explain into details with regards to the proposed reforms, the Chairman of the Proposal Committee Nana Ato Dadzie revealed that the part B calls for the continuous registration of voters system already approved by IPAC and accepted by the EC be implemented.
“However, for reasons of cost and convenience, the registration should be undertaken at the district offices of the EC once every month”, he added.
Some of the recommendations in the part B includes the EC ensuring that voting period of 7am to 5pm be maintained as well as EC should be required to publish details of all election results on polling station by polling station and Constituency by Constituency basis on its website and in the Gazette.
“There must be a public broadcast of the Presidential vote collation process at the EC head office as and when the Constituency Presidential results are received and certified”
The rest are constitution of Special adjudication court to adjudicate post electoral disputes as well as the Abolishment of the Regional collation centres.
Nana Dadzie therefore called on president Akufo Addo to initiate steps to operationalize the 3 reform recommendations in Part A.
“We hope that government will initiate the necessary steps to operationalize especially the 3 flagship reform recommendations in Part A of our proposals as well as the recommendations of the Constitutional Review Commission”, the Chairman of the Committee emphasized.
Source: www.thenewindependentonline.com
