Several serious flaws, failings affected credibility of 2020 polls – NDC

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has said the aftermath of the 2020 Presidential and Parliamentary Elections has left doubts on the minds of many Ghanaians and governance experts about the credibility of Ghana’s electoral process.

A statement issued by the Director of elections of the NDC, Elvis Afriyie Ankrah said having conducted a comprehensive review and audit of the 2020 elections, the NDC observed several serious flaws and failings that affected the credibility of the elections.

Consequently, the statement said, the leadership of the party commissioned a team of experts led by Nana Ato Dadzie, a Senior Advocate of the Supreme Court of Ghana, a former Chief of Staff to the then President of the Republic of Ghana and International Political Transitions Consultant and Professor Kwamena Ahwoi, a Professor of Governance, a former Minister for Local Government and Rural Development; a former Minister for Foreign Affairs and a former Minister for Planning, Regional Economic Cooperation, and Integration.

In all, the party has come up with 34 recommendations for consideration by the government and the Electoral Commission which when implemented will help restore the credibility of Ghana’s elections. These recommendations have been shared with various stakeholders including the Electoral Commission.

“The leadership of the NDC together with the technical team on electoral reforms has been holding very fruitful consultations with representatives of a cross-section of key Civil Society Organisations in Accra. CSOs that participated in the meeting included the Institute for Democratic Governance (IDEG), West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI), IMANI Africa, Community Focus Foundation and Africa Centre for Women in Politics. Others were ASEPA, CARE Ghana, ISODEC, Ghana Integrity Initiative, ADAM GH and Youth Bridge Foundation.

“The National Chairman of the NDC, Hon. Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo thanked the CSOs for their interest in electoral reforms. He extended a hand of partnership to the CSOs to support electoral reforms that will help safeguard the integrity of Ghana’s elections and

democracy.

“The electoral reforms committee, together with the leadership of the party, are scheduled to meet other stakeholders such as labor unions, religious leaders, the National Peace Council, the National House of Chiefs, and the Diplomatic Community in the coming weeks. It may be recalled that the National Democratic Congress rejected the results of the 2020 Presidential Election and proceeded to challenge the same at the Supreme Court. The party also disagreed with the judgment of the Supreme Court citing obvious procedural improprieties leading to a flawed verdict.

“Subsequently, the party announced a temporary boycott of the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) and Electoral Commission’s activities pending reforms that guarantee free, fair, transparent, and credible elections.

“The purpose of the consultations is to build consensus with key stakeholders on important reforms that are required to restore the credibility and integrity of Ghana’s electoral process.”