Election 2016: Defuse the tension – Peace Council to EC

The National Peace Council (NPC) has counseled the Electoral Commission to abide by the Supreme Court’s fiat that disqualified political parties should be given a second chance to fix errors on their nomination forms.

There is simmering tension at the EC headquarters in the capital Accra as some of the rejected candidates have been left unattended to with the 5pm deadline fast approaching.

The national chairman of the Council Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Asante visited the EC offices on Tuesday to assess the situation.

Speaking to the media, Rev. Asante prayed the EC to handle the situation carefully before it escalates, adding the parties must be given a fair treatment.

“They have the responsibility to ensure that the ground is level. They should ensure that they do not do anything that will create tension in the nation,” Rev. Asante admonished the Electoral Management Body.

He added: “I believe that the ruling of the Supreme Court should bring finality to the case, especially in respect to the presidential candidates who have been disqualified… I don’t think that anymore impediments should be put in their way.

“The spirit of the ruling is that they should be given the opportunity to be part of the process. I would wish that the EC would do the best that they can to ensure that the spirit of the ruling is carried out.”

Rev. Asante also “admonished the political parties to make sure that they do not allow emotions to override the kind of things that they do.”

“I’ll plead with them to make sure the proper documentation is done so that all of them will be there for Ghanaians to have a wider choice in terms of the person they want to be president,” the Religious leader noted.

Errors galore

Following the Supreme Court’s ruling, the EC has announced more errors have been discovered on the forms of some of the disqualified candidates.

The EC says it has detected 33 new errors on the nomination forms of the National Democratic Party (NDP) presidential nominee, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings.

A statement signed by the General Secretary of the NDP, Mohammed Frimpong said the EC’s announcement of discovery of new errors is ‘unfair’ and ‘absurd’.

On the nomination forms of the All People’s Congress’ Hassan Ayariga, 93 new errors have been detected bringing to 95 the total number of mistakes he needs to correct before 5pm today.