EC advises NDC to table its proposed reforms before IPAC

district level elections
Jean Mensa, Chairperson of the Electoral Commission of Ghana

The Electoral Commission (EC) has advised the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to present its proposed electoral reforms at the Interparty Advisory Committee (IPAC) for deliberation.

The largest opposition party in the country has proposed a number of electoral reforms which it hopes will make elections in the country free and fair.

The recommendations were put together by a team of experts led by former Chief of Staff, Nana Ato Dadzie, and former Local Government Minister in the Rawlings Regime, Professor Kwamena Ahwoi.

The NDC said the recommendations were informed by perceived flaws in the 2020 election, which triggered a presidential election petition after John Dramani Mahama rejected President Akufo-Addo’s election victory.

The party said it plans to meet with labour unions, religious leaders, the National Peace Council, the National House of Chiefs and the Diplomatic community to engage further on the proposals.

“We don’t deal with individual parties, and IPAC is designed to promote multi-party views, so IPAC is the right forum for such discussion.

Speaking in an interview on Atinka FM’s AM Drive with host Kaakiyre Ofori Ayim, General Secretary of NDC, Johnson Aseidu Nketsiah also said, a legislation should be passed to bind the Electoral Commissioner as the returning Officer of the Presidential Elections to afford the agents of the participating political parties and candidates’ full participation in the collation of the Presidential Election results at the EC’s National Collation Centre.

He said, in the proposal, the party wants the EC to be mandated by law to apply to the courts to remove names of deceased and other unqualified persons from the provisional register when informed by the relevant authorities.

Read Also: NDC wants EC to get rid of regional collation centers

“So, we responded to their proposals and asked the party to bring it to IPAC,” the commission said in reaction to the proposed reforms.

The NDC listed 34 recommendations to the EC including the scrapping of the regional collation centers across the country.

According to the party, the introduction of the Regional Collation Centres has disabled party agents at the National Coalition Centres from performing their duties.

However, the commission explained that “Regional Collation Centres in our own estimations were good, and that would have been continued-nevertheless if there’s an opportunity to improve, it would be available to do so.”

Ghana | Atinkaonline.com

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