Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Johnson Asiedu Nketia, has called for the immediate dismissal of the leadership of the Electoral Commission (EC), describing them as incompetent and unfit for purpose.
Speaking in an interview on JoyNews on Wednesday, June 25, Asiedu Nketia cited a series of incidents that, in his view, demonstrate the EC’s inability to effectively carry out its constitutional mandate.
His remarks come as controversy deepens over the unresolved parliamentary election in Ablekuma North, where six months after voting, the constituency remains without an elected Member of Parliament.
“There has to be a change,” he insisted. “The three top leadership must all go. They have managed the commission so badly.”
The NDC Chairman argued that the protracted electoral stalemate in Ablekuma North reflects gross negligence and failure on the part of the EC.
“You cannot still be having an election that will go into a stalemate. There is no anticipation of any stalemate in our laws unless people don’t want to do their work well. It’s a clear case of negligence or inability to perform its functions.”
Asiedu Nketia further criticised the EC’s performance under its current Chairperson, Jean Mensa, describing the Commission’s track record as deeply worrying.
He pointed to the disenfranchisement of the Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe, and Lolobi (SALL) communities during the 2020 general elections as a prime example of what he believes is consistent electoral mismanagement.
“Six months on after the election, and we still don’t have an elected MP. That must tell you something is wrong. This commission, as presently constituted, took over the reins of the Electoral Commission, and they have never done a satisfactory election.
“First was SALL. A whole constituency went unrepresented for four years. Now, Ablekuma North. And the Ayawaso West by-election? Everything has been messed up,” he said.
Asiedu Nketia warned that the continued stay of the current EC leadership poses a serious threat to Ghana’s democracy and called for a complete overhaul of the Commission.
“Resetting the EC means bringing it back to an institution that is fit for purpose,” he explained. “The way it is existing now, it is not fit for purpose.”
“If in any serious country we want to maintain this type of Electoral Commission, then I don’t know what the country is about,” he concluded.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/Hamdia Mohammed
