The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has announced its intention to seek legal redress over the Electoral Commission’s (EC) ongoing re-collation of election results.
The party has petitioned the EC to halt the process, which it claims lacks legal backing and undermines Ghana's electoral laws.
Addressing journalists in Accra on Friday, the NDC National Chairman, Johnson Asiedu Nketia, expressed dissatisfaction with the re-collation exercise taking place at the Tesano Police Training School.
He described the process as illegal and a deviation from established electoral procedures.
“Our silence is being taken advantage of by both the EC and the NPP,” Mr. Asiedu Nketia said.
“Elections are won or lost at polling stations. Collation of results is done at constituency collation centers, not police stations. What is happening at Tesano has no basis in our electoral laws.”
He further alleged that the results for Fanteakwa North Constituency, which had already been collated and announced at Begoro, were being re-collated and re-declared by an unauthorized individual at the Tesano Police Training School.
According to the NDC, only designated Returning Officers at the constituency level have the exclusive authority to collate and pronounce results for both parliamentary and presidential elections.
The party argued that any action by unauthorized individuals compromises the credibility of the electoral process.
“The district officers, if not designated as Returning Officers, cannot pronounce parliamentary results. Whatever is happening at the Police Training School is inappropriate and fraught with consequences,” the National Chairman added.
Mr. Asiedu Nketia questioned the role of the police in providing security for what he described as “illegalities” and called on traditional leaders to refrain from supporting actions that could exacerbate tensions.
The NDC has filed for an injunction to stop the re-collation process and warned of serious repercussions should the EC proceed with what the party considers a flawed exercise.
“If the EC insists on continuing with this re-collation, they must be ready to face the consequences,” Mr. Asiedu Nketia cautioned.
The party also emphasized its commitment to protecting the sanctity of Ghana’s electoral process, urging stakeholders to adhere strictly to the country's electoral laws.
The court is yet to rule on the NDC’s application for an injunction, as tensions rise over the legitimacy of the re-collation exercise.
Story by: Joshua Kwabena Smith
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