The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, has cautioned against happenings at the Electoral Commission (EC) ahead of the December polls.
He has blamed the government for failing to address ongoing issues at the Commission to help build the trust of the people in it ahead of the elections.
The Speaker has been telling TV3’s Beatrice Adu in an exclusive interview Tuesday, September 10, 2023, that the political parties themselves have concerns with the EC which have not been addressed, something he says could degenerate into mayhem should they persist on the day of the elections.
According to him, although the Commission itself has reported of several challenges at its outfit, the government has paid deaf ears to them, putting it at a position that could spell doom for the State.
“Missing of equipment. As of today, at the lecture, Lawyer Kofi Bentil still stressed that they believed strongly that what the Electoral Commission put out was incorrect. And that those equipment, plus what they said were disused equipment and had to be replaced, were actually not the true state of affairs. That is the view they still hold as of today. And so when you come to the parties themselves, there are these concerns they raised.
“And the Electoral Commission itself has come out talk about lack of logistics and resources to do their work. These are all things that the establishment, the government, could take action to solve. If that is not being taken, then how can you build a trust?” he quizzed.
[EXCLUSIVE] The Electoral Commission has been prevented from being seen as an impartial arbiter, and that has affected their credibility – Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin#TV3GH pic.twitter.com/wc6Z6VesJe
— #TV3GH (@tv3_ghana) September 11, 2024
He called for a consensus building amongst stakeholders on the challenges raised to avoid a possible mayhem at the polls.
“And so it’s for all of us to coalesce, work together to make sure that the right thing is done before the election day. Or else we’re just playing with fire,” he added.
He, however, prayed that no such thing that can distort the peace of the nation occurs.
“Anything could happen that day. And none of us is praying for that to happen. But if you go to the election and you see that the officials themselves will count up to 20 and the next ballot is 70, then you know you’re in trouble,” he concluded.
Election 2024 is a test for Ghana’s multiparty democracy – Bagbin
