The Electoral Commission of Ghana has denied allegations made by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) regarding a supposed plot involving the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the EC to illegally insert the name of an unqualified NPP parliamentary candidate into the Assin North Voters’ register.
The NDC earlier claimed that the NPP and the EC have collaborated to transfer the vote of NPP’s Charles Opoku to the Assin North Constituency. The motive behind this alleged collaboration was purportedly to enable Opoku participate in the upcoming by-election in the constituency.
The Electoral Commission, however refuted these claims, stating that they are entirely false and baseless. In a press statement, the EC indicated that no such request to transfer the votes of any individual has been received from the NPP. “This allegation is false and a figment of the author’s imagination. As usual it is aimed at maligning the integrity of the Electoral Commission,” the statement read
The EC referenced Article 94 of the 1992 Constitution, which outlines the eligibility criteria for parliamentary candidates.
“In the event where a person who wishes to contest in a particular constituency does not hail from that constituency, that person will be eligible to contest if he/she is ordinarily resident in that constituency or has been a resident there for a total period of not less than five years out of the ten years immediately preceding the election for which he/she stands.”
The EC emphasized that the constitutional provision demonstrates that a person’s registration as a voter in a particular constituency is not a prerequisite for contesting elections there. Merely hailing from the constituency satisfies the requirement. Therefore, there is no basis for engaging in the alleged transfers, as claimed by the NDC’s Communications Officer.
The Electoral Commission further asserted that it has consistently upheld transparency, fairness, and integrity in all its operations. “It is a well-known fact that the current Commission has been the most transparent and accountable in its operations. The Commission has carried out its mandate in strict consonance with the Constitution.”
