A member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) communication team, Hamza Suhuyini Sayibu, has called for drastic reforms at the Electoral Commission (EC) of Ghana.
According to him, the only way to safeguard the country’s democracy is to reset the election management body by removing the Chairperson, Jean Mensa, and her two deputies.
Speaking on Accra-based TV3’s New Day show on Monday, July 7, Suhuyini said it has become clear that the current EC leadership is easily influenced and cannot be trusted to spearhead credible electoral reforms.
“It is for all of us to agree that in the interest of our democracy, there’s a need to reset the Electoral Commission. As a political party, we are clear in our minds that one sure way of protecting this democracy is by resetting the EC and finding ways to get these guys out of office.
“We are not mincing words, and we appreciate that now that we are in government, some people may argue that we are doing this for partisan interest. But this is about consistency. These were concerns we raised even while in opposition,” he stated.
Suhuyini stressed, “These are concerns the NPP is suddenly coming to accept—that indeed these guys can be influenced. Because if you are saying that their decision to re-run 19 polling stations in Ablekuma North was largely influenced by what our Chairman said, then clearly we should not have people like that manning our Electoral Commission as a country.”
He added, “Since their appointment, these individuals have proven that they are either incompetent or willing to be corrupted by the political class when it comes to election management. This is why we believe they should not remain in office.”
The Electoral Commission has recently come under heightened criticism from sections of the public following its announcement to re-run part of the disputed Ablekuma North parliamentary polls on Friday, July 11.
