The Electoral Commission (EC), in a statement signed by its Deputy Chairman for Operations, Mr. Samuel Tettey, has urged the public to disregard a video circulating on social media depicting a man stuffing a ballot box.
The Commission unequivocally stated that the said video has nothing to do with the operations of Ghana’s Electoral Commission let alone the just-ended Ejisu by-election in the Ashanti Region.
“The attention of the Electoral Commission has been drawn to a video circulating on social media depicting a Polling Station in an enclosed area. The video shows a man stuffing ballot papers into a ballot box”.
Electoral Commission (EC)
According to the EC, some details about the video clearly indicate that it has nothing to do with Ghana’s Electoral Commission or the Ejisu by-election.
As such, the EC pointed out that the vest the Ghana Electoral Commission uses for its operations is blue while the official in the video is wearing a green vest.
The statement indicated that the second person seen in the video is wearing an orange vest, emphasizing that the Electoral Commission of Ghana uses a blue vest for its Operation Staff.
Furthermore, the Electoral Commission through the statement noted that Ghana’s polling stations are cited in open spaces, pointing out that the polling station in the video is in an enclosed area.
Moreover, the EC indicated that each polling station at Ejisu had at least six police officers in addition to the agents of the candidates, asserting that no police officers were visible in the video being circulated.
The EC further stated that all the ballot boxes of the Electoral Commission of Ghana are labeled according to the name and code of each polling station, stressing that the labels are boldly pasted on the ballot boxes. “The ballot box in the video is not labeled”, the statement noted.
As such, the EC indicated that each polling station in Ejisu had only one ballot box while two ballot boxes are displayed in the video.
More so, the inscription on the vest worn by the man in the video, as pinpointed by the EC, is not in the English language. “That of the Electoral Commission of Ghana is in the English language” it added.
EC’s Credibility At Stake
The EC urged the public to disregard the video as it is aimed at tarnishing the image and credibility of Ghana’s Electoral Commission, stressing that the events in the video did not occur in Ghana and have nothing to do with the Electoral Commission of Ghana.
“In this era of misinformation and disinformation, we entreat the public to cross-check information with the Commission so as to ascertain the truth. As a Commission, we remain committed to delivering credible, fair, peaceful, and transparent elections in 2024”.
Electoral Commission (EC)
Meanwhile, Ghanaians still doubt the credibility of the Ejisu by-election which was conducted on 30th April.
According to some Ghanaians, the election was soiled with bribery and vote buying as some electorates of the constituency admitted that they were paid to vote for one of the candidates.
Also, the EC had to withdraw two of its agents at one of the polling centers due to allegations of bribery laid against them.
Moreover, Professor Gyampo, in his criticism of the just-ended by-election at Ejisu, noted that the outcome of the election is due to vote-buying which undermines the purpose of elections and Ghana’s democracy.
“I thought we didn’t have money to keep Ghana switched on. Will same money be shared in the 2024 General Elections”. – Prof. Gyampo
Vote buying has severely undermined the credibility of the Ejisu election, casting a dark shadow of doubt over the legitimacy of the electoral process and the true will of the people.
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