EC cannot be trusted to be fair – PPP
12th November 2016
The Progressive People’s Party (PPP) has questioned the neutrality of the Electoral Commission in its supervision of the December polls. According to the party, the Commission’s posture is worrying because of its bias against some political parties.
Speaking on Citi FM’s News Analysis and Current Affairs Programme, “The Big Issue,” the Executive Secretary of the party, Richard Nii Armah alleged that although the commission is supposed to act as a fair and fair referee in the 2016 general election, the posture of the Electoral Chair was one of bias.
“From where I sit, I do not think that the Electoral Commission is putting itself in a way that every fair thinking Ghanaian will admit that the EC is being a referee, because some of the actions taken by the EC has been suggest that the commission is not being fair”.
According to the Executive Director, the Electoral Commission seem to have a pre-conditioned mind that some parties are not to be taken serious and must be dealt with haphazardly. “On the day of the balloting, we (PPP) were called two minute before Madam Charlotte Osei started addressing the press. Which means if we hadn’t gathered intelligence to go there, they (EC) would have done the balloting and we wouldn’t be there.”
Mr. Armah also expressed frustration about the stance of the Electoral Commission regarding the candidature of the flagbearer of the All People’s Congress, Dr. Hassan Ayariga. “We should asked Charlotte Osei who she thinks will win this election, since she knows those who are going to lose. It appears as if there was an effort by the EC to ensure that certain candidates do not get on the ballot paper, he added.”
Background
The Electoral Commission last month disqualified some 12 aspirants due to anomalies on their nomination forms, but the Supreme Court ordered the commission to extend the nomination period and give the parties a hearing. But the commission has for the second time disqualified the Flagbearer for the All People’s Congress (APC) from contesting the general elections.
Dr. Ayariga was disqualified alongside the presidential aspirants of the United Freedom Party (UFP), the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP), the Ghana Freedom Party (GFP), the United Development System Party (UDSP), the Democratic People’s Party (DPP) and the Independent People’s Party.
Source:citifmonline.com